Monitoring Devin White
July 17th, 2023
How committed is he?
Joe knows this will ruffle feathers. Hey, don’t blame Joe. Someone else is the source.
Earlier this year when Bucs linebacker Devin White asked for a trade, it left a sour taste in Joe’s mouth. A guy who underperforms decides to stomp his feet wanting out just as the Bucs appear to be on a downward slope after the Tom Brady era? Well, that didn’t sit well.
Some call that “frontrunning.”
Especially when you look at a guy like White’s teammate Lavonte David. He did nothing but absolutely ball out and bust his tail year after year for a franchise that had, for most of his career, no viable future. Anyone remember David asking for a trade?
So with the Bucs transitioning from Brady to Kyler Traskfield (or as many national scribes believe, transitioning to a signal-caller currently playing on Saturdays), Joe wonders if White will be part of that.
Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com has the same questions.
Keep an eye on Devin White. He asked for a trade, and his performance last season was a bit rocky — even Todd Bowles’ public defense of White included an admission by the coach that White loafed on at least one play. Is White in Tampa for the long term?
Joe has referenced this many times: White has been trending south since he went bananas and dominated in the 2020 postseason like few linebackers ever have.
For example, when is the last time you read or heard of a Hall of Famer call out a player for loafing, a player thought to be a franchise cornerstone? Saying the team should “rip the ‘C’ off his chest.”
Also, Joe can’t recall many times when an organization built a team around a player who wanted out.
If a guy doesn’t want to be part of a rebuilding (reloading?) to regain league prominence, hey, no harm, no foul. Don’t waste time with him.
Joe is not saying White is a quitter, but asking for a trade (and sitting out offseason team workouts) is in the same neighborhood as quitting. You either want to be part of an organization or you don’t. Which is it?
(Please do not confuse this with Derrick Brooks in 2001. The Bucs’ legend sat out 11 days of training camp after he was promised a new contract by the Bucs but the team didn’t deliver. Brooks never demanded a trade and you never heard anyone suggest he loafed in a one-score game.)
As Bear Bryant once said of quitters, they quit on you once, they’ll quit on you again.
Joe’s very curious to see how committed White is as he searches for a payday. That is, if White doesn’t hold out.
Joe sure hopes White play and tears up the league like he did in January and February of 2021.
July 17th, 2023 at 4:55 am
Rosenthal … ‘Is White in Tampa for the long term?’
That’s the key question IMO, but it really shouldn’t matter. White is under contract for 2023 & the Bucs aren’t in a position right now to negotiate a new contract for him. He can pout all he wants, but Tristan Wirfs & Mike Evans are standing in line in front of him.
Personally I think he’s expendable for 2024, BUT we would hopefully find his replacement before cutting him loose. It MIGHT be Dennis, but I still doubt it (when was the last time a rookie # 153 FIFTH ROUND pick effectively replaced a veteran #5 FIRST ROUND pick?). Really don’t want to see us spend a high draft pick on Devin’s replacement in 2024, but we may well have no choice.
July 17th, 2023 at 6:06 am
Our offense was trash which forced our D to be on the field entirely too much. I’ll forgive guys for not being their best last year because it was just impossible. This is just journalists in the off-season filling pages or air time. D White will play and contribute.
My biggest issue is with the low salary cap in the NFL. These greedy owners can’t see what’s happening in other sports with massive contracts for sports with far less risk of injury? They should be spending dramatically more on these guys because the NFL is rolling in dough. Guys have shorter careers in the NFL than probably any other sport. They deserve to be paid better
July 17th, 2023 at 6:18 am
@FairMinded talking about greedy owners when a guy making $11m a YEAR is pouting and stomping his feet because he’s not making $20m a YEAR???? And it’s the owners fault??? Early on a Monday but that’s just stupid.
July 17th, 2023 at 6:24 am
Very disappointed in White asking for a trade, loafing and saying he got bored playing during an interview when Bucs had a big lead in a game as to explain why the other team got back in the game. And it does seem like he is a front runner.
Wish he had 1/4 of the integrity of Lavonte David who is one of the greatest Buc linebackers in team history.
July 17th, 2023 at 6:31 am
Certainly JL can find a LB needy team and trade White for a mid tier RB and a 5th or 6th rounder?
July 17th, 2023 at 6:37 am
@frontfour yeah I’m not in the habit of defending Billionaires over the guys in the trenches sorry. Just because a guy makes more than you or I will see in a lifetime doesn’t make their market value and shelf life any different
July 17th, 2023 at 6:40 am
And I’m not attacking our owners. I’m saying the league can do better. The NFL has about the same salary cap as MLB teams with far more players per roster and (I haven’t looked this up but I would guess), far more TV revenue and whatever other revenue streams combined
July 17th, 2023 at 6:42 am
Top end MLB teams that is..don’t think they have a salary cap in the same way but I mean comparative salaries for a roster. So maybe a bad comparison. But a guy can have a 20 year career in MLB vs much shorter career in the NFL
July 17th, 2023 at 6:43 am
Thought White might be the next Ray Lewis. Turns out he’s more like Jerry Lewis!
July 17th, 2023 at 7:30 am
Honestly, at this point trading White sooner rather than later could be a win. Give up a questionable linebacker in a strong defense, get some draft picks to rebuild with, and most importantly, free up some cap space to shore up the offensive line or run game?
11 million dollars could go a long way.
July 17th, 2023 at 7:31 am
@fairminded, how about instead paying the crazy salaries they stop rising ticket prices. It’s costing over $600 to take a family of 4 to a game. I bet we all could use the money more than the owner and players.
July 17th, 2023 at 7:36 am
Up to Bowles to do his job and motivate White……IMO, he has not been handled well thus far……should have been called out……should not have been lauded and then not given a contract.
Just my opinion……Bowles, do your job.
July 17th, 2023 at 7:45 am
Let him hold out he really doesn’t have as many options as he might think he does
July 17th, 2023 at 7:49 am
I’m with Fairminded about the salaries. However, I disagree that any defensive player is forgiven “for not being their best last year” because, our offense led by TB12, put them on the field too much? Always play hard!
July 17th, 2023 at 7:54 am
His leadership quality seems to be lacking. Since this is the ‘Lost’ and last Bowles season find a better player for the recovery that starts next year and will take a while with new coaching staff.
July 17th, 2023 at 8:25 am
There’s nothing for White to hold out for and to be honest no NFL team is going to pay him more than Fred Warner.
@FairMinded
The salary cap is expected to increase pretty significantly the next few seasons starting the 2024 offseason. It’s capped at about $225M now and is expected to be at or above $300M by 2027 and I think that’s partially why we didn’t see many high paying long-term contracts being doled out this offseason because teams are setting the books up for spending next year and beyond. If that helps at all.
July 17th, 2023 at 9:03 am
Tbbf
These are paid professionals. Well paid.
It shouldn’t require a HC to do the motivating.
July 17th, 2023 at 9:05 am
I question whether he likes the coach and has confidence in him, and he has every reason to want out after seeing close up what should have been a perennial Pro Bowler and Hall of Famer in Lavonte David get snubbed year after year, punished for being loyal to a garbage team with garbage leadership.
July 17th, 2023 at 9:31 am
His words were absurd. I try not to judge people by their words, but more by the actions I see them take.
His actions are those of a very selfish individual.
In a game where you need to depend on your teammates I would be hard pressed to depend on D White. That C should already be gone.
Go Bucs!
July 17th, 2023 at 9:37 am
@FairMinded…
You, and I am really sorry to say, have no idea what you are talking about.
White is not getting payed because tons of pepole like GM COaches and a big part of the BUcs fan base (Including me ) don´t think he is that good,and he needs one more year to show it, pure and simple, is not because greedy owners and salary cap issues….
Anf by the way, he is getting 11m clams out of it….
July 17th, 2023 at 9:38 am
MY HEART IS TELLING ME DEVIN PLAYS FOR THE BUC’S THIS YEAR WITH A CHIP ON HIS SHOULDER..SIRVOCIA DENNIS COULD TAKE HIS PLACE RIGHT NOW ,BUT I PREFER HE PLAY AT LEAST A YEAR IN RELIEF OF LAVANTE & DEVIN & PREPARE TO START AS EARLY AS NEXT YEAR..AS FAR AS THESE TOM BRADY COMING BACK RUMORS, I WANT THEM TO DIE OUT QUICKLY..WE’VE GONE YOUNG, WE’VE GOT CONTINUITY, LET’S DON’T F…IT UP WITH A EXPENSIVE QUARTERBACK WE NO LONGER NEED..LET’S GO BUC”S ! EYES ON THE FUTURE BABY ! ! !
July 17th, 2023 at 9:51 am
He is the
Jameis of the defense
July 17th, 2023 at 10:10 am
Hey Fairminded, you ever sign a contract, and have recently not played up to the standard you set for yourself? Then ask for a trade because you feel you didn’t get paid enough?
White should play his best this season. If he does anything else or is again “Bored in a game”, lacks hustle and commitment to the team game plan. WE CUT BAIT!
White is a solid LB, who has great skills, and some not so great. He was a first-round draft pick. Giving his team a fifth-year option to his contract. Prove what you are worth every day.
Then see where the chips fall at the end of the season.
July 17th, 2023 at 10:28 am
Accept any decent offer and get him off the team. He doesn’t deserve to be a Buccaneer.
July 17th, 2023 at 11:00 am
So will he just hold out till 2030?? He still won’t hit Free agency, that doesn’t seem reality based to me
July 17th, 2023 at 11:13 am
Devin White can blitz and play the run pretty well but he gets lost in pass coverage and is a liability in that role.
IF he wants to become the highest paid ILB in the NFL he needs to be a more complete player.
There is not a single team that will pay him $20M to be a one dimensional ILB especially in the pass dominant NFL.
July 17th, 2023 at 11:28 am
Guy is looking for $$$ nothing more, he got punked by a backup guard not once but all game against the Cowboys.
Send him to the Arizona Cardinals where careers go to end, for a glass of cold water if they can find it. If not who cares release him, his open market value is not as high as he thinks.
July 17th, 2023 at 1:32 pm
If Devin doesn’t play like his hair is on fire this season we will be stuck with him.
No one will want to pay him big bucks today because he was a one trick pony last season. He could make anything happen on a delayed blitz.
His outside containment was more of a detriment than an asset.
Even if he tries this season he will still pick bad angles and show his horrid tackling technique. His head is in some far off dimension if he thinks he is worth more.
July 17th, 2023 at 2:00 pm
White wasn’t even the best linebacker on the team last year.
July 17th, 2023 at 2:46 pm
Hope in one hand sh!t in the other see which one fills up first
July 17th, 2023 at 4:36 pm
He said he wanted to a $100 million dollar deal before he ever played a down.
In this new era of “pro-athlete” we all have to pretend that’s not a red flag. But it is.
July 17th, 2023 at 5:29 pm
Joe, I think he actually quit during the season. He got mauled by some offensive lineman mid year (which I had not seen until last year) and of course the infamous play that everyone saw during the Ravens game.
July 17th, 2023 at 5:36 pm
Front running sounds more like something they do in the NBA(Lebron James) Does anyone even watch the NBA anymore? If he wants to leave then let him. Hopefully you can get a decent pick for him. I think he is still butthurt over Sapp calling him out like that on the national stage. That was pretty bad. The loaf was bad and so was Sapp calling him out. That must have hurt . He got caught and film doesn’t lie
July 17th, 2023 at 6:03 pm
White was literally an ALL-PRO player, and is perhaps the best interior pass rushing LB in the NFL. He needs his coaches to use him that way, and not ask him to sit back in a soft zone where he’s not that good.
As for White, he needs to get off social media. You can’t be a words hurt cupcake and be on Twitter, it’s not a good combo.
Personally I have no issue with White wanting to get paid, and hopefully the Bucs not paying him will motivate him to have his best season ever. If he does, then he’ll get paid. Pretty easy.
July 17th, 2023 at 6:08 pm
Buccos – I normally agree with Sapp on most things he says, but he viewed a random clip on Twitter without context and commented on that. If you watched the rest of that Ravens game, in particular on Amazon with their view of the entire field, it showed on each play how much distance guys were covering, and White was literally, by far, the guy flying all over the field for the first three quarters of the game. I mean literally every play the guy is running 40-50 yards, sideline to sideline, the entire game. If you recall in that game, the Bucs defense was dominate in the first half, then Shaq got hurt, plus the Bucs were missing all their corners and had to start the 6th rounder, and the Ravens came out throwing the ball over and over again and got shutdown. In the 2nd half, the Ravens (unlike the Bucs on offense) changed their scheme and went back to running on everyplay, and just wore down the undermanned defense. That clip of White, if I recall, was either late in the 3rd quarter, or in the 4th quarter, and was, I believe late in a drive, or right after a 3-and-out by the offense coming off a very long Ravens drive. That clip is fake news, taken out of context, meant to bash a guy who had a great until he ran out of gas – which was 100% on Leftwich and his stupid playcalling that had the Bucs constanting going 3-and-out. Plus all the injuries on defense didn’t help either.
July 17th, 2023 at 7:43 pm
“As Bear Bryant once said of quitters, they quit on you once, they’ll quit on you again.”
Bear Bryant was a smart man.
July 17th, 2023 at 7:56 pm
I don’t get at all why some of you want to just chuck White to the curb.
He’s an asset, and the Bucs have all the leverage.
If holds out, he doesn’t get paid and the Bucs hold his rights next year, too.
If he plays well, pay him or let him walk. If he gets what he thinks, the Bucs get a third round comp pick. And this is bare minimum if someone comes offering a trade. 5th and 6th? Licht should hang up the phone as soon as he’s done laughing.
When you have leverage, you use it. You don’t throw it away.
July 17th, 2023 at 8:48 pm
It’s amazing how much this fan base criticize Devin White about last year. This guy lost his dad last year mid season and I think that’s why he struggled last year . His mind wasn’t fully focus on football and I understand that he was still mourning the lost of his dad and he probably still is mourning his dad . It’s crazy how much y’all gave Brady a pass for his situation and it was his choice to choose football over his family and all y’all gave him a pass. Y’all criticize Devin White for something he has no control of and that’s him losing his dad. This fan base is pathetic !! Y’all talk facts at all you give excuses to the players the media like.
July 17th, 2023 at 10:24 pm
The NFL has it right with shared revenue with the players which equals a cap.
Green Bay would never even have a team without the way the NFL operates.
Baseball is dying. Seriously. They have a huge problem getting new fans. HUGE.
MLB and NBA have a lot less players to rev share with. Big difference.
July 17th, 2023 at 10:41 pm
@Fairminded: you understand the cap is simply based on revenues, right? It’s about a 50/50 split players and owners, & if you’re saying it needs to veer there towards players, that’s fine. But the AMOUNT of cap space is not some arbitrary # the owners pulled out of their butt.
July 17th, 2023 at 11:16 pm
remember when kwon came in…
what we he a 4th rounder, maybe a 3rd…?
he came in like a house on fire…was like a rookie of the year type candidate, and the first few years, definitely the first 2 he was an amazing backer…
then i think he slowly and subtly declined every year after his 2nd season…and that decline turned into a long term thing as he moved on to sf for the big contract…then bounced to new orleans and the jets…and maybe even another team in between or after…
there are some players who peak in year one or two and decline for the years thereafter, until they’re out of the league…
it’s not the standard of how players peak and decline, but it happens…
i’m not saying DW is that guy, but the bucs witnessed it first hand with kwon so they could be weary buyers
July 17th, 2023 at 11:30 pm
Rod- you may be right. Perhaps the loaf was taken out of context. What Sapp said about him was extremely harsh. I’m not sure White ever gets over that. Maybe Sapp should keep his big mouth shut
July 18th, 2023 at 9:34 am
“a words hurt cupcake” Hahahahahahah I will reuse this with your permission.. hahaha hahaha
July 18th, 2023 at 9:26 pm
Oneilbuc YOU are pathetic and have zero to bring to a conversation except your bias views, always a victim, always something unfair for “your” guy and any other “guy” has all the unfair advantages. You are completely transparent and will of course accuse me of having bias because that is what you do. I don’t care about what a player or coach looks like, but for you it is the only thing that matters. Save it, I will not be reading your pathetic response.
July 19th, 2023 at 12:16 am
Mike C. What are you talking about what a guy looks like where did you read that at in my post?? I made a difference in one guy losing his dad vs a guy who chose football over his family. One didn’t have a choice and the other guy did have a choice. I think you have a problem the way they look on the outside and I guess that’s what you were saying about me but I didn’t mention how any one looked on the outside and I guess that means their race to you!!!