Devin White Showed Something
August 24th, 2019
Mixed bag Friday.
As Joe noticed other defensive rookies blowing up games this preseason, Joe wondered why Devin White, the No. 5 overall pick, was virtually invisible.
So last night, Joe focused binoculars on the Bucs rookie linebacker to find out maybe why he wasn’t showing up on the stat sheet much — much less the highlights. Billed as the savior of the Bucs defense, White wasn’t flashing through most of training camp and preseason.
In the first quarter, White made virtually no impact on the game. He wasn’t around the ball much and the few times he dared to cross the line of scrimmage he was stonewalled.
Once trying to get to Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, White was pancaked by Browns left guard Joel Bitonio. It was a rough start for the LSU product.
But late in the second quarter White started to come around. In three plays, White nearly missed Mayfield but still got a lick in on him, even though the official gamebook did not credit White with a quarterback hit as of 2:02 a.m. this morning (for a split second Joe thought White would get flagged for a late hit; you know how paranoid zebras are about quarterbacks).
On the next play White did a beautiful job running parallel to the line of scrimmage, shedding blocks and moving the scrum to the right so much that Browns receiver Rashard Higgins couldn’t turn the left corner on a short gain on a pass play to the left.
The next play White stopped Browns running back Kareem Hunt for a one-yard gain on a plunge up the middle.
Overall if Joe had to grade White for his play in the first half, Joe would give him a “C-.” White was too much of a non-factor for most of it. However, his spurt of three plays in the second quarter impressed Joe enough that it damned near bumped White’s overall night up to just plain average.
White finished with three tackles, one assist and goose eggs everywhere else on defense.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:04 am
He showed a lot! I was impressed!
August 24th, 2019 at 8:12 am
They are saving Devin for the Niners, Bowles is gonna blitz the … out of Jimmy G. Why show it all now, as Ronde said, only 10% of the defensive playbook, likely since Bowles wanted Devin, he has plays designed for him and Vita
August 24th, 2019 at 8:13 am
I agree, he has had a slow start, especially for the 5th overall pick, but the guy has brains, strength and elite speed. He just needs a little more time to overcome the college to NFL speed of the game.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:13 am
A C-? Really Joe? Your generosity is underwhelming. Devin White did his job. Bucs defense held the Browns to 3 FGs in the first half after being ‘blessed’ with some horrible field positions thanks to the Bucs’ offense. Splash plays aren’t the ‘be-all and end-all’ when it comes to measuring effectiveness.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:14 am
Nobody other than this site has billed him as the savior of the Bucs defense. Bruce Arians anointed him a Day 1 leader and culture-changer.–Joe
August 24th, 2019 at 8:14 am
Who exactly was it that billed him as “the savior” Joe? That would be Bruce Arians and Jason Licht. –Joe
August 24th, 2019 at 8:17 am
After watching Josh Allen for the 1st time, Buc Fans should be sick to their stomach that Gump reached for the wrong Devin.
No excuses!
How many more years does the Gumpster Fire have left?
August 24th, 2019 at 8:18 am
I feel ya Joe. Meanwhile in Jacksonville Josh Allen is causing havoc.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:39 am
“Ghost
Kinda sad. Yikes 5 years! Some of the old timers here at JBF might never see another GM in Tampa Bay.
GM John Dorsey vs GM Gump
Clev going to playoffs next 7 years while Bucs can be the worst team in the NFL”
Kobe Faker
August 24th, 2019 at 8:39 am
Best plays White made last night did not show up on the stat sheets. He stone walled Hunt coming out of the backfield right at the line of scrimmage totally eliminating him in the passing game. Think Kamara and McCaffery! Watch the film again! Kid played really well last night. Definitely not a C grade.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:50 am
If White is the leader of the Defense he should get credit for a great Defense last night…….Baker Mayfield 10-26…….zero touchdowns even with great field position…..it was a fantastic performance.
August 24th, 2019 at 8:57 am
“I thought our inside run defense was stout
Alot of beef inside holding their lanes. GMC created more running holes for the opponents with his cute swim which he always guessed the wrong side”
Kobe Faker
August 24th, 2019 at 9:04 am
Starting to wonder if Joe actually watches football or just looks at the statistics. Considering there’s no Vita Vea and no Lavante David our defense has been pretty damn good this preseason and white is a part of that. There is a lot more to learn in this system as a middle linebacker than there is simply an edge rusher. Calm down Joe
August 24th, 2019 at 9:05 am
We passed on Derwin James last year and Josh Allen this year. How much better would this team be with these guys. Who is making these picks? They are totally clueless!
August 24th, 2019 at 9:09 am
The dude is clearly directing traffic on the defense. Even if he’s not doing the work himself he’s definitely making an impact.
August 24th, 2019 at 9:17 am
They’re hiding him. With the vanilla scheme they’re running in pre-season he can’t show much. This let’s us know how much a factor he will be in Todd Bowles’ blitz packages.
August 24th, 2019 at 9:25 am
Linebacker/DE Josh Allen joined a jaguar team filled with talent he’s just the cherry on the ice cream. The linebacker with the Steelers is joining another talented defense that’s played in the same system for decades. For the Buccaneers to switch systems and look this good is amazing. Maybe we should be talking about Jordan whitehead and how great he’s playing. Or the secondary as a whole. Or the fact that we’ve been getting sacks even though Joe does not believe that a 34 defense will generate sacks. How about the fact that the Browns have all kinds of playoffs buzz nationally and we kept them out of the end zone all game. No let’s concentrate on skepticism! LOL
August 24th, 2019 at 9:25 am
I think LVD needs to call the plays. It looks like devin is thinking too much.
August 24th, 2019 at 9:50 am
Perhaps the reason he hasn’t “flashed on tape”is because we are expecting him to be making solo tackles on every running play, blowing up running backs. Truth is though the team has stout against the run because the big uglies have been playing well. The opportunities to make those “wow” plays have been limited by good team run defense. I give him a pass because while I haven’t seen him making plays, I also haven’t seen him missing tackles or losing his gap.
August 24th, 2019 at 9:59 am
I was hoping for more from him. I think more time is needed to get a good feel about him. No excuses one way or the other, but hes a rookie with crazy expectations. Give him more time.
August 24th, 2019 at 10:02 am
I’m just saying that a 5-12 team needs to draft impact players.
I thought that When BA arrived, things would change.
BA made his mind up on White a month before he should have. When good fortune struck on draft day and Josh Allen fell into the Bucs lap, it didn’t matter. They did not adjust, they pig headedly took DW.
I haven’t seem such myopic stupidity since the Ray Perkins era.
I’m no genius but when I saw clips of DW in college, he was not impressive and had very poor tackling technique.
The Bucs had a miracle from God happen on draft day. They had a golden opportunity to select Josh Allen in the 1st.
They had an opportunity to take the best CB in the draft, Treyvon Mullen in the 2nd. MVP of the National Champion Clemson Tigers football factory. Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden covered that fumble.
With the 70th pick, another miracle from God, the best RB in the history of college football (8.2 YPC) had fallen because someone said because he was 2″ shorter than ideal, he would be too easy to tackle. Henderson led the NCAA in yards after contact (6.18) for all three years he played college ball. There were about 900 RB’s in the 3’s and 4’s, nobody else exceeded 5.0.
With those 3 picks, the Bucs would be Super Bowl contenders. They still could have drafted SMLB, James Dean, Edwards and Miller. Instead we will be scouting the mock drafts by October.
We did get a double secret, back door, hush-hush, middle of the night contract with the Gumpster Fire.
August 24th, 2019 at 10:02 am
5-11
August 24th, 2019 at 10:08 am
So White flashed but you’re Uber critical of Nassib who hit the QB twice while the ball was still in his hands, but didn’t wrap up, as well as being tasked to reroute RBs that tried to get out in a pattern on his side AND rush the passer? Nassib was a monster last night and your evaluation of him couldn’t be further off.
August 24th, 2019 at 10:08 am
I’ve noticed he runs scared. Not sure if that’s a preseason thing that he’ll turn on in the reg season. But he seems very tentative when coming up to make a tackle
August 24th, 2019 at 10:37 am
When he’s comfortable enough to stop thinking and start reacting he’ll be one of our best players. This takes time just like it took time for Via to start blowing up the line.
August 24th, 2019 at 10:50 am
My friend and i closely watched No.45 Devin White on every play snap him and only him we watched and we both agreed he played timed even lost in the middle of the field and hesitant when attacking the ball carrier call it gun shy butterflies in the stomach perhaps rookie syndrome. I hope he gets in a groove and show he’s worthy of being selected in the first round or Bucs fan will call him Casper the Ghost White. So it was said so it was written.
August 24th, 2019 at 11:06 am
Thrusting a rookie into this level of responsibility is almost unprecedented. This shows how BA and coaches regard their young stud.
Expecting White to perform like a seasoned veteran is stupid. He has a tremendous amount to learn. The whole of the 16 game season is going to be a force-feeding, up-and-down learning curve for him this year.
Look out for White in his second year! Only then look for the spectacular.
This “instant gratification” world view from fans and pundits gets old. No wonder so many become cynical .
cynical: negative or pessimistic, as from world-weariness
August 24th, 2019 at 11:54 am
Kwon got the green dot his rookie year to start the season too. So a rookie MLB calling plays is hardly unprecedented.
August 24th, 2019 at 12:09 pm
DEVIN BUSH PLAYS SIMILAR DEFENSE IS KILLING IT WITH SURE TACKLING AND LEADERSHIP. BRIAN BURNS IS BEST DE ON FIELD IN THE PRESEASON WHEN HE PLAYS, WATCH CAROLINA. ITS SUPER FRUSTRATING BUT THE DEFENSE PLAYED WELL LIMITING CLEVELAND ROUTES BUT THEY PLAYED WITHOUT 2 SUPERSTAR RECEIVERS, DONT FORGET.
August 24th, 2019 at 12:11 pm
C-???
Browns couldn’t run the ball
Mayfield was ineffective
If offense could have moved ball and special teams didn’t suck, game would have been 3-3 at half.
Joe, me thinks you are comparing White with Josh Allen’s pre- season show.
August 24th, 2019 at 12:25 pm
Yeah mlb, especially, is almost like a rb type of transition to the pros. So many young guys do well in those spots. Hard to “coach up” toughness and vision. Being asked to be a captain, being it’s a new scheme for all, shouldn’t be THAT big of an ask. I think he’ll do well when he gets his feet wet and makes a couple big plays. Confidence is key at that spot. He doesn’t want to make a big mistake early it seems.
August 24th, 2019 at 12:30 pm
Nice to see the defense already looking better than the Koetter/smith debacle
August 24th, 2019 at 12:32 pm
Unfortunatly keeping the ultimate entitled player in McCoy as leader didnt help Smith any either…but the combination of those two: The enabler and the entitled proved to be tragic for last years season
August 24th, 2019 at 12:33 pm
And ALL due respect, Alan, but stopping Baker mayfield is NOTHING. People will get used to that statement. He’s hot GARBAGE and I’ve been pulling for the Browns the last 3 -5 years. It’s insane they drafted a hype man #1 overall. But THATS the Browns. He’s not a leader and is a major distraction at BEST. I’m tired of his mouth and he was t even the best rookie on his own team(Chubb). If Jameis was as trashy as him he’d be LAMBASTED. I’ve NEVER seen a more overrated player. I understand it’s as simple as he and a trash market, missing Lebron, is trying its BEST to “speak it into existence”…NOT going to happen. Mark my words!!!
August 24th, 2019 at 12:36 pm
The oline looks like the weak link so far which is scary. That needs to be fixed immediately if not sooner
August 24th, 2019 at 12:39 pm
Lol…you can see that the hallmark of BA regime so far is no free rides, no enabling, no primadonnas and especially no entitlement
August 24th, 2019 at 12:43 pm
Joe spelled out in the story why he gave White that grade. If you have on video White making an impact in more than three plays, please e-mail the video to Joe.
August 24th, 2019 at 1:07 pm
You’re intentionally looking for dirt on White. Why else would you focus your binoculars on him on every play?
August 24th, 2019 at 1:47 pm
Buctooth
Great to watch game with you last night. #45 did nothing last night…..a ghost! Was in the middle of the field, never covered anyone, and never near the ball. I am a Patriot die hard…Luv TB12, and slowly converting to a Buc fan and one day a Buc doehard, but damn that #45 White was a bust last night and hope he does not end up being a 1st round Bust!
Go Patriots ooops I mean go Buc’s
TB12👊
August 24th, 2019 at 2:18 pm
My handle says it all. We couldve gotten a linebacker in the 2nd or 3rd rd that could match Devin Whites production. He is an avg linebacker just like Hargreaves is an avg cornerback. Licht lives to take avg players high in the draft. I’ve been a Bucs fan since 1988 and i can honestly tell you I’m about done watching and following this garbage ass team until they make a change at GM and if that means Arains has to go as well than good f-ing riddance to the lot of them
August 24th, 2019 at 2:22 pm
@Shooter our defense played without 2 Superstars as well dont forget not to mention our Superstar wide receiver didnt play as well dont forget
August 24th, 2019 at 2:24 pm
Kwon Alexander looked better his rookie season than Devin White by a longshot and he was drafted in the 4th rd. Hod why is Licht so bad. He must have some blackmail stuff going on the Glazers cause there’s no way in hell anyone with a decent yet good football mind would give that idiot a contract extension.
August 24th, 2019 at 2:26 pm
Another bad pick by Licht.
August 24th, 2019 at 3:13 pm
These morons saying bad pick or calling him a bust based off a few quarters of preseason football are literally morons. As in literally.
As for White, I watched him to, again from TV so it’s limited by that, but most of the time the ball wasn’t going his direction. I only noticed one blitz attempt, but again, which was a delayed blitz where Mayfield was already getting brought down. Again, that’s viewing from the TV angle with awful Channel 8 production where they hardly ever showed a useful replay, but mostly what I saw was just White being involved because the plays weren’t going his direction. Glad to see he had the nice series to end the half, that’s good.
In any case, as stated over and over again, the Bucs defense wasn’t showing much. Also the Bucs starters didn’t blitz all that often, they mostly played a soft zone. The 2nd stringers blitzed a lot more which resulted in more pressure. In any case the defense held Mayfield, who had great field position all night, to what, 9 points and a 30 QB rating. So whatever the defense was doing, they did it well, and the DB’s, where there should be worry, they played well.
As for White, he’s the most highly rated LB prospect in years, so lets see what he does when the games matter and he’s doing more than just playing the middle of the field in a zone.
August 24th, 2019 at 7:33 pm
Joe-
I don’t have audio of White, which may have been his greatest contribution-calling defensive signals
stopping the run is about controlling gaps- Bucs did their job.
There didn’t seem to be any blown pass coverages
Overall D was great and I’ll take that over a pathetic D with a hyperactive Rooster head at Middle Linebacker who occasionally makes splash plays
White will improve as season goes on, especially if Bucs starters heal up
August 24th, 2019 at 7:45 pm
Please do us all a favor and don’t write anything about Devin White again. From early on before the draft you guys had a hard on for this guy. All negative..all the time. Everyone on the on that side of the ball is learning a new system, not just White. Give these guys time to find their roles and it will be fine. Its a work in progress…….
August 25th, 2019 at 7:41 pm
He’s a rookie… I would expect that he would look average for at least 4 or 5 games. It is media guys who use words like messiah and savior on rookie draft choices. I think the average fan is a lot more realistic about rookie impact. If they are average to good in the first year that’s a positive.
August 25th, 2019 at 10:12 pm
If we haven’t learned by now, that this particular Joe, didn’t like the drafting of White, we should have our heads examined. When he types “Savior Linebacker” it actually means “Joe’s least favorite draft pick.” Plus grading rookies off a good or bad performance during a preseason game is about as ridiculous as grading a rookie solely off underwear football or grading a sports writer on his writing abilities based on their tweets.