SR’s Fab 5: Devin White Has Played His Way Out Of Tampa Bay

Welcome to SR’s Fab 5 – my weekly insider column on the Bucs that features five things that are on my mind. SR’s Fab 5 is now a quicker read, but still packs a punch. Enjoy!

FAB 1. Devin White Has Played His Way Out Of Tampa Bay

What in the world has happened to Bucs inside linebacker Devin White?

He’s gone from a rising superstar to one of the worst inside linebackers in the NFL within a matter of two years. The play-making Pro Bowler that helped the Bucs win Super Bowl LV has gone missing.

And given the fact that he’s in a contract year, it’s clear that White isn’t coming back to Tampa Bay.

The game tape is too bad. It’s too inconsistent.

Too many bad plays. Too few good plays. Too much lack of effort.

I don’t know what Jason Licht thinks of White’s play this year, but I know that Licht is no dummy.

If Licht wasn’t enthused to sign him to a long-term contract extension this offseason and make White play out his fifth-year option year based on an inconsistent 2022 season, White has done absolutely nothing to change Licht’s mind based on his 2023 film. Yes, it’s that bad.

It’s a stunning fall from grace for one of Tampa Bay’s once-promising young defenders and leaders. Where did it all go wrong for Devin White?

No one knows for sure, but I’ll take a stab at it.

Perhaps we should start at the beginning.

When the Bucs’ brass, which consisted of Licht, then-head coach Bruce Arians and then-defensive coordinator Todd Bowles first met the LSU inside linebacker at the NFL Scouting Combine in 2019, they knew he would be a great fit in Tampa Bay’s defense.

The Bucs weren’t going to re-sign Kwon Alexander, who was coming off a torn ACL in his contract year, and Bowles needed a fast inside linebacker that he could pair with Lavonte David. After they interviewed White, who blazed a 4.42 in the 40-yard dash at the Combine, the members of the Bucs’ brass knew they were going to draft White with the fifth overall pick.

Pewter Report knew it too, although no member of the Bucs’ brass told us that or tipped us off. Just watching White’s LSU highlight reel with his sideline-to-sideline speed and his ability to blitz screamed “Todd Bowles linebacker.” It was an easy conclusion to jump to.

When Pewter Report was the first media outlet to have White going to Tampa Bay at No. 5, many Bucs fans scoffed at that notion. Some ridiculed us, suggesting that off-ball linebackers didn’t merit being selected in the Top 5.

But White was different. Fast, athletic, physical with some swagger to his game. He was not just a tackling machine. He was a playmaker.

In the 2019 offseason, Pewter Report had White going to the Bucs in four out of our five mock drafts. I changed things up for the third mock draft – just to break up the monotony, having the Bucs select Kentucky edge rusher Josh Allen. But for the last two, including our final mock draft, White was the guy.

Pewter Report has never had such a strong consensus in any mock draft series other than when we had Jameis Winston going to Tampa Bay in all five mock drafts in 2015.

And of course, White was the pick at No. 5 in 2019.

His rookie season made Licht, Arians and Bowles look like geniuses. Despite missing a total of three games, White notched 91 tackles, 2.5 sacks, forced three fumbles, recovered four fumbles, including two for touchdowns, broke up three passes and had an interception.

White was the playmaker the Bucs envisioned he would be.

In his second season, White had eight double-digit tackle games after only having two as a rookie to finish with a team-high 140 tackles. As a blitzer, White had a career-high nine sacks and almost led Tampa Bay in that category, too.

In the 2020 playoffs, White was a monster. He had 11 tackles, an interception and a key fumble recovery in a 30-20 upset at New Orleans. White added 15 tackles and a fumble recovery to key a 31-26 win at Green Bay in the NFC Championship Game. In Super Bowl LV, White had 12 tackles and a late-game interception in the end zone that denied Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City with a chance for a touchdown in a 31-9 win.

White made the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement after the 2021 season, where he notched a game-high 14 tackles back when the Pro Bowl was actually a football game. Then, Arians retired and Bowles took over as the Bucs’ head coach. Arians had a way of holding players accountable that Bowles simply doesn’t.

In my opinion, that was the beginning of White’s decline.

FAB 2. Todd Bowles Hasn’t Held Devin White Accountable

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and LB Devin White – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

White’s stats in 2022 were actually better than they were in 2021. The LSU product had 128 tackles and 3.5 sacks with three passes defensed in 2021, but no takeaways of any kind. Last season, White had 124 tackles, 5.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and a career-high five pass breakups.

But inconsistency really set in. After six double-digit tackle games in 2021, White had just four in 2022. More importantly, White had eight games where he totaled just five tackles or less during the 2022 season. He had just six of those games the previous regular season.

One of those games was actually not the Ravens game on Thursday night, a 28-22 loss to Baltimore in which White was called out by Bucs legend and Hall of Famer Warren Sapp for loafing and not showing enough toughness in shedding blocks. Pewter Report echoed Sapp’s sentiments.

It was an embarrassing display for White and Bowles did him no favors by making excuses for him after that game, saying that he was gassed on some plays – in addition to loafing.

“It was a little of both,” Bowles said.

When asked if there had been a drop off in White’s level of play, Bowles defended his star linebacker.

“I don’t think there’s been a drop-off – defense is a team sport,” Bowles said. “You’re not going to be a star by yourself – there are guys in front of you and guys behind you. To say that Devin has dropped off…the defense has dropped off, I would say. I wouldn’t say Devin has dropped off. It’s about playing together, it’s about making your reads and doing the right things. He’s doing a lot of things we asked him to do – I have no problems with Devin.”

There’s nothing wrong with saying, “Devin has to play better” or “we need more from Devin” or “that was not a good showing by Devin against the Ravens – he’s capable of playing better.”

But Bowles didn’t do that. And he has refused to hold White accountable by benching him either last season or this year where White has yet to have a double-digit tackle game through Week 12.

In fact, Lavonte David didn’t even play in Indianapolis after injuring his groin in the third quarter against San Francisco and he still has 21 more tackles than White does – 90 tackles to 69 tackles.

I’ve been told that White has been called out in team meetings for his poor plays or lack of plays. But most think it’s just lip service by Bowles at this point.

FAB 3. Devin White’s Value Has Plummeted

By not holding Devin White accountable, Todd Bowles has only created a monster of entitlement. He’s enabling White’s poor play and allowing it to continue.

Here’s where it gets interesting.

By not holding him accountable, Bowles has actually hurt White’s stock when it comes to free agency next year. There’s no way White gets the $18 million-$20 million he thinks he’s worth. He’s delusional if he thinks he’s even going to get a one-year contract worth the $11.7 million he’s making this year.

Talking to talent evaluators and salary cap people around the league, I’m hearing White might be lucky to get a one-year, prove-it deal worth $6 million-$7 million. Yes, his game film is that bad.

And by keeping him in the starting lineup and not perhaps getting a better version of White after benching him and then letting him work his way back into the starting lineup, White’s poor play hurts the defense. That in turn hurts the team, which makes Bowles look bad and results in losses, which very well could cost the head coach his job at the end of the season.

Talk about self-inflicted wounds.

Bucs outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka played one of his best games of the year on Sunday against Indianapolis. He was benched in favor of rookie YaYa Diaby, who has been outperforming him over the last month and Bowles finally made the change.

Tryon-Shoyinka played a season-low 28 snaps – or just 38% of the plays versus the Colts, while Diaby played 48 plays, which was 66% of the snaps. Diaby actually wound up with just one tackle for loss, while Tryon-Shoyinka had two tackles, a sack and a QB hit.

Bucs ILB Devin White and Colts QB Gardner Minshew – Photo by: USA Today

Did JTS play better due to the benching? Did he make the most of fewer opportunities as a result, making less reps count more?

Could White have benefitted from a similar situation in 2022 or this year to get his NFL career back on track?

To be fair, White has been playing hurt this year. He dealt with an early-season groin injury and now has been playing on an ailing foot. After Sunday’s 27-20 loss at Indianapolis in which White overran quarterback Gardner Minshew, he alluded to the fact that his injury caused him to not be able to make that play.

But inside linebackers coach Larry Foote said that can’t be an excuse and that White has to be able to make that play regardless.

In fact, White whiffed on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on a similar play against Kansas City last year when he didn’t have a foot injury.

It’s these types of plays that will ultimately lead White out of Tampa Bay. His trade request in the offseason and some social media comments angered people inside the halls at One Buc Place, but could have been forgiven if he turned in a great season in a contract year.

But that hasn’t happened.

White wasn’t a bad draft pick by the Bucs because his first two seasons were pretty dynamic and his stellar postseason in 2020 directly led to Tampa Bay winning Super Bowl LV. That alone made his selection worth it.

White checked a lot of boxes early in his NFL career – being drafted in the Top 5 as a rookie, winning the Super Bowl in his second season and being in the Pro Bowl after his third. Perhaps he’s believed his own hype. Perhaps he’s been enabled too much and not held accountable enough.

With a lack of effort visible in most games this year, White seems like he’s making some calculated business decisions and is playing like someone who doesn’t want to get hurt – or injured worse in his case.

“He’s got to be honest with himself,” Foote said on Thursday. “Sometimes as coaches, we’ve got to protect him from him, but on Sundays, you’ve got to make plays. Hurt? Everybody is hurt. He knows that. He is fighting. Nobody is ever going to question that.

“Since he’s been here, we know he has played hurt and banged up, but on Sundays, you know, he demands it, I demand it, the fanbase, everybody and football itself … you’ve got to make plays.”

Bucs legend and Hall of Famer Ronde Barber played the entire 2002 postseason with a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his knee that later required surgery, including the NFC Championship Game where he famously returned a pick-six 92 yards to send Tampa Bay to its first Super Bowl.

Like Foote said, “You’ve got to make plays.”

Especially if you’re White and in a contract year.

This all adds up to the fact that White is in for a rude awakening this offseason in free agency when he’s forced to find work elsewhere – and certainly not anywhere for his initial asking price.

“People know ‘Devin isn’t going to be on the board long, and we’re not going to find another Devin 10 years from now. He’s rare,’” White said, via Roy Lang of the Shreveport Times after his LSU pro day in 2019. “Draft me, because when I hit free agency in five years, the price will go up. I’ll be looking for $100 million then.”

White can look all he wants, but he won’t find $100 million in free agency next March. Nowhere close to it.

In fact, White’s value has gone nothing but down over the past two seasons.

FAB 4. Can SirVocea Dennis Be A Starting-Caliber Inside Linebacker?

The Bucs have high hopes for inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis, a Day 3 pick in this year’s draft. Dennis, who played collegiately at Pittsburgh along with Tampa Bay’s first-round pick, defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, got his first NFL start on Sunday in a 27-20 loss at Indianapolis and played well.

Filling in for injured starter Lavonte David, Dennis had six tackles in his debut as a starter. Dennis had three tackles the previous week in the fourth quarter at San Francisco when David got hurt.

Bucs ILB SirVocea Dennis – Photo by: USA Today

Bucs inside linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Larry Foote commended the rookie for his play against the Colts.

“He did a good job,” Foote said. “He played under control for the most part. There were a couple of times he looked like a rookie. Typical linebacker stuff – don’t guess, read your keys and anticipate. But he did a good job. He plays under control. When you watch him, you can see the game is not too fast for him and that’s encouraging.”

Dennis’ best play of the day came on one of the worst plays surrendered by the Bucs defense – a 30-yard catch-and-run by tight end Mo-Allie Cox. Facing a fourth-and-short, Tampa Bay’s defense was selling out against the run, but Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew executed a perfect play-action pass that caught the Bucs biting on the fake.

Except for Dennis.

Cox wasn’t Dennis’ assignment, but the rookie linebacker who is known for his high football I.Q. recognized the pass and took off in pursuit of Cox, tackling him before he could score a touchdown.

“Coming in, we knew he was an above-the-neck type of player,” Foote said. “I want more of that [from] him. I know he’s a rookie and there’s a lot of leadership in that room, but at this point, talk and be more assertive. If you see something tell the guys and just jump in. The old guys will embrace that. And he’s smart, so I think guys already respect him from that standpoint so they’re ready to listen. I’m just encouraging him to [not] take on the rookie [role] – be vocal out there. It was a heads up play by him.”

Bucs ILB SirVocea Dennis – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

With David continuing to miss practice with his groin injury and Devin White’s lingering foot injury putting his chances of playing against the Panthers in question, Dennis seems slated to start his second game in a row.

Except he’s been battling an illness all week that prompted the team to send him home on Wednesday and miss practice that day and also on Thursday. Now, Tampa Bay has an availability problem with its top three inside linebackers this week.

“It’s day-to-day,” Foote said on whether Dennis will be able to play. “We don’t know. Coach [Todd] Bowles has to make that decision. I’m definitely talking to him. I tried to coach him up this morning and he’s a little bit under the weather. We’re giving him the gameplan, he will be up to par from a mental standpoint. Coach Bowles will have to make that decision, if he is available for us on Sunday.”

It’s unfortunate that Dennis isn’t healthy right now to better capitalize on this opportunity for playing time. This coming on the heels of Dennis missing the last two preseason games – where he would have played a lot – due to a hamstring injury.

The only thing stopping Dennis from being a better version of himself is experience and that only comes playing playing on game days.

“We need [those] guys out there,” Foote said of rookies like Dennis. “Each day is big for those guys. It’s TLC – tender, loving care – [those] guys need it, they need it. But, like I said earlier, he’s a smart guy. He is already ahead of the curve in my opinion. But the more snaps [and] the more days, the better off for him. A lot of young guys are getting snaps and that is going to helps us down the road.”

Bucs LB SirVocea Dennis – Photo courtesy of USA Today

Tampa Bay wants to see him make some splash plays down the stretch – like the kind he made as a three-year starter for the Pitt Panthers. Dennis recorded 232 tackles, 36 tackles loss for loss, 15 sacks, two forced fumbles and two interceptions, including a pick-six in college.

The fifth-round pick opened some eyes in Tampa Bay during the offseason with a total of four pick-sixes in practice between the rookie mini-camp, OTAs and training camp.

The Bucs would love to see Dennis emerge as an option to be a starter at inside linebacker in 2024 to either replace White or David, both of whom are free agents. The Bucs think he’s that caliber of player, but need to see him start more games down the stretch to truly make that evaluation.

The hope for Dennis and the Bucs is that he recovers and is healthy enough to start on Sunday versus Carolina so the evaluation can continue.

FAB 5. It’s More Clear Than Ever – Bucs Must Re-Sign Lavonte David

With Devin White’s departure from Tampa Bay imminent at season’s end – regardless of whether or not Todd Bowles returns as head coach – the Bucs need to re-sign veteran Lavonte David for the 2024 season.

Bucs ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: USA Today

Replacing one starting inside linebacker is tough in one offseason, but replacing two would be quite a chore for Bowles or the defensive coordinator who replaces him should he get fired after the 2023 campaign.

While 30-year old wide receiver Mike Evans has easily been the MVP of Tampa Bay’s offense this season, the 33-year old David is neck-and-neck with playmaking safety Antoine Winfield Jr. as the Bucs’ defensive MVP. Despite missing the last five quarters of play, David is still the team’s leading tackler with 90 stops. He’s 21 tackles ahead of White, who hasn’t missed a game this year.

Pairing David, who is widely regarded as the second-best linebacker in Bucs history behind Hall of Famer Derrick Brooks, with SirVocea Dennis next year could give Tampa Bay two of the headiest linebackers since the days of Brooks and Hardy Nickerson in the late 1990s or Brooks and Shelton Quarles in the early 2000s.

David was signed to a one-year deal worth $4.5 million this season, but has a LTBE (likely to be earned) bonus that he could hit to trigger a $2.5 million bonus. The Bucs should strongly consider another one-year deal for David next season that could be worth $7 million.

Heck, with more available cap room in 2024, David actually deserves a raise from the Bucs.

The post SR’s Fab 5: Devin White Has Played His Way Out Of Tampa Bay appeared first on Pewter Report.