Better Q2 Needed For Devin White
October 7th, 2020
Where much is invested, much is expected. And when your team has a Super Bowl goal and mindset, those expectations get magnified.
Buccaneers savior linebacker Devin White, last year’s No. 5 overall pick in the NFL Draft, is an elite run defender but he hasn’t proven to be much else. Those are facts.
Through one quarter of this season, White hasn’t forced a turnover and he has shown little improvement in pass coverage. Billed by Bucs officials as an elite blitzer coming out of college, Joe’s not seeing that level yet.
Much has been written about how the nation will learn about Lavonte David this season because of all the Buccaneers’ primetime games, including tomorrow night. The same spotlight is available for White, as it will be for Bears linebacker Roquan Smith, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Smith burst onto the NFL scene as a rookie, took a step back, and now appears to be in the midst of playing the way Bears fans desire.
There will be all kinds of talk about inside linebackers on the Bucs-Bears FOX/NFL Network broadcast. Joe wonders where White’s play will rank tomorrow.
Joe’s pulling for White to live up to his draft status. For the Bucs to take the next step on defense, they need him to make plays.
October 7th, 2020 at 7:35 am
I see a lil more lunch pail play than extreme talent and extreme instincts ,,,,, good player but I wouldn’t say elite !!
October 7th, 2020 at 8:00 am
Devin has been invisible at times. It was a huge recovery of the fumble by Devin just before the half. But I thought his impact overall would be showing up more by now. Hopefully he starts turning it up a notch, he is needed bigtime for the success of the D. GO BUCS!!!
October 7th, 2020 at 8:01 am
He will eventually start making it home with the blitzes. And he has already shown a propensity for causing and/or recovering turnovers. It will all come together soon. Hopefully starting the second quarter of this season. Not worried.
October 7th, 2020 at 8:01 am
Joe Devin White has 37 tackles already was leading NFL with 26 by week two. Bowels has definitely been blitzing with DBs more than LBs. Key piece to our run defense so don’t try to say he needs to get better because he didn’t have five pics and five fumbles last week. *Not to say I wouldn’t love to see him get five sacks, five picks, and five fumbles a game.
October 7th, 2020 at 8:07 am
Seriously Joe? I’d bet that Devin White has been doing pretty close to exactly Todd Bowles’ defensive schemes right now call for him to do. Leads the Bucs in tackles (combined), has 2 PDs (only Davis & LVD have more), 2 TFLs, and 1 FR. And oh ya, he’s making some pretty good calls for the defense it appears (from the results). Last game against the Chargers he didn’t show up very much in the stats (only in on 4 tackles), but a lot of that had to do with the Chargers game plan I’d suspect (he was only targeted once … with 0 completions). Give him a break … Devin’s more than holding his own, even for a 1st rounder. Never wrote or thought that he wasn’t holding his own, but he was drafted No. 5 overall to do more than that and be a complete player. –Joe
October 7th, 2020 at 8:15 am
I totally forgot about the game changing FR. Have you had your Joe, Joe???
October 7th, 2020 at 8:25 am
Devin White blitzing the A-gap causes plenty of havoc. To say that he is invisible because his play allows others on the defense to thrive is baffling, Same as bitching that Vita isn’t doing anything while taking on double-teams a majority of his snaps.
Somebody will make a play!
I will say that Devin’s pass coverage ‘feel in space’ is lackluster. There have been too many 3rd and forevers that have been completed to receivers in his middle zone.
October 7th, 2020 at 8:27 am
With the exception of Suh, JPP, and the great LVD, this is a very young defense. It is Bowles’ second season at the coaching helm. Knock off the SB talk. I just want to get into the playoffs. Hey Joe, any way you can update the photos on here?
October 7th, 2020 at 8:41 am
Thank you DR, that’s exactly the way I have seen it!
October 7th, 2020 at 8:42 am
When Joe gets on a player…..he stays on a player……Rojo & White come to mind.
There may have been one, but I don’t remember a “living up to your draft pick” article on Jameis Winston. And he was the #1 overall pick. Over and over and over, Joe wrote that Jameis Winston was an average starter. It was also discussed on many podcasts. Never did you hear Joe label Jameis a top-10 quarterback. –Joe
Let’s see how Josh Allen, Joe’s coveted pick instead of Devin White did in Q1.
Sacks 2 Tackles 4 Forced Fumbles 0
October 7th, 2020 at 8:49 am
White is a liability in coverage!! Which I never expected and he is starting to fix if you watch the games closely he’s getting closer and closer… He’ll get it…. But you’re wrong about the sacks … While he may not have any himself he has caused at least half the sacks they have by crashing the middle so hard it creates havoc!! Which gives everyone else a chance to get a sack!!! He’s coming along in the pass protection… Remember the guy has not been playing linebacker for a long long time or nothing!! Once the guy gets the rest of this year under his belt I believe he will be elite!! The guy is just too talented not to be….. I hope!!
October 7th, 2020 at 9:09 am
How can an average QB be “America’s Quarterback”?
October 7th, 2020 at 9:11 am
Yes…..Joe wrote that…..but I don’t recall an article dedicated to that…..sorry, I missed it.
October 7th, 2020 at 9:22 am
Did anyone else see the footage of McCaffery calling D. White “the best”? Search YouTube for NFL week 2 miked up. It’s near the middle of the video. I don’t know about him being the best but, he has blazing speed, reeks havoc & is always around the ball.
Oh, and #45’s response to McCaffery’s claim? “I know.”
October 7th, 2020 at 9:22 am
He has to play better because thats not who Joe wanted picked. Imagine if he was a first pick overall how much higher the bar would be? Right Joe?
October 7th, 2020 at 9:53 am
Boo. I boo you sir. Your skills at watching and evaluating football are subpar at best. Devin White has been an impact player this entire year.
Yes, he needs work in pass coverage. But that doesnt mean he hasn’t been effecting the passing game. He has been a crucial part of Bowles’ blitz packages.
Go back and watch the blitzes where a DB gets to scream around the edge untouched and hammer the QB. All of them have one thing in common. Devin White destroying the A gap. It happened just last sunday on Jordan Whiteheads sack.
I agree whole heartedly with what Tbbf said above. Once you get yourself fixated on a player and decide they arent worthy, it stays that way. Regardless of their play.
According to Christian McCaffrey, Devin White is the best in the game right now. His opinion is much more valuable than yours.
October 7th, 2020 at 9:58 am
he was drafted No. 5 overall to do more than that and be a complete player. –Joe
agree with you there JOE!!!
wheres the INTs…SACKs…
i still see him having to tough time fighting off blocks, not wrapping up and over running plays(just like kwon)….
he’s still young and its still early in the season but i havent seen “IT” just yet….
GO BUCS!!!!!
October 7th, 2020 at 10:02 am
According to Christian McCaffrey, Devin White is the best in the game right now.
LMAO!!!!
DW aint even the best LB on the team…lol…thats LVD!!!….
DW is a good player…he’s not a BUST….
but he needs to make more plays in the passing game….INTs and SACKs….
GO BUCS!!!!!
October 7th, 2020 at 10:12 am
Oh shut up 813. If Devin White was a Gator and not a Tiger youd say he was the best player in the league.
I’ll never forget how badly you embarrassed yourself last year relentlessly defended Vernon Hargreaves who may very well be the worst Corner in football.
October 7th, 2020 at 10:13 am
Based upon what DB said a few weeks ago, I would think his pass coverage is the biggest area of concern. I’ll take DB’s word for it. He certainly knows what he is looking at.
Devin gets this straightened out, and I think he will be fine.
October 7th, 2020 at 10:16 am
AwShbucs…VH3 worst corner? Not talent wise…but maybe the worst one in terms of working as a team role model with other young CB’s.
October 7th, 2020 at 10:17 am
Oh yeah and let’s not forget one very crucial detail that has to this point been left out of the discussion.
Devin White was recruited to LSU to play running back. He is only a quarter of the way through his 5th year playing the position.
He is the very rare young player with an incredibly high floor and ceiling.
October 7th, 2020 at 10:19 am
Mark, talent means absolutely nothing if you cant use it. It’s no small coincidence that upon Hargraeves departure, our defense has become much much better, while Houstons has become downright terrible.
October 7th, 2020 at 10:49 am
It will click for White. He has the speed, instincts, work ethic, etc. Too much going for him to not be successful.
October 7th, 2020 at 11:38 am
@813bucboi … “DW is a good player…he’s not a BUST…. but he needs to make more plays in the passing game….INTs and SACK”.
Devin White is much more than a ‘good player’ bucboi; he’s a VERY good player. IMO the one thing that VERY GOOD and GREAT defensive players do is that they ‘play within the defense’. And Devin has done that beautifully IMO.
Kwon was one of those MLBs who ran around with his hair on fire (OK, the Matador) always trying to ‘make plays’ but IMO he did a mediocre job of ‘playing within the defense’. And as a consequence, it cost the Bucs’ defense big-time.
LVD made a huge number of plays against the Chargers (TEN solo tackles, 1 PD & 1 TFL), while White only had ONE solo tackle. Why? My guess is that the Chargers were more willing to take their chances against LVD than against White, not because Devin had a bad game. LVD was targeted 5 times by the Chargers, with 4 completions. White was targeted ONCE, with ZERO completions. BTW, big mistake by the Chargers … LVD gave up a TOTAL of only 11 yds on those 4 completions.
BTW Bucboi, our Secondary was a different story. SMB was targeted 8 times, with 8 completions (for 132 yds & 2 TDs … I still think he’s hurting BTW). Whitehead was targeted 3 times, with 3 completions (for 80 yds & 1 TD), and Winfield targeted 2 times, with 2 completions (for 70 yds & 1 TD). The best performer in the Secondary? No doubt Carlton Davis; targeted 4 times but allowed only ONE completion (for 9 yds & 0 TDs).
Says a lot about the Chargers game plan. Worked quite well against Bowles’ defensive scheme, MOST of the time … until it didn’t.
October 7th, 2020 at 12:15 pm
I am with you Joe. I agree. Being drafted that high makes for very high expectations – a game changer, NOT just a good player. That is more Lavonte than Devin. We need to see much more SPLASH!!
October 7th, 2020 at 12:50 pm
Not to change the subject but after watching Minter play Sunday I feel he is a very underrated LB.
October 7th, 2020 at 12:51 pm
Being drafted that high your supposed to be making the splash plays ints,FF,FR, sacks, etc I would love to see all those things. He’s bin all over the field making plays not splash plays but regardless he’s making plays. They will come I promise those plays will come. I will also say LVD is freaking everywhere so maybe he’s taking away from some of those maybe not. I seriously love the way both are playing and going to say they will be the best tandem inside LBs in the game call me crazy lol
October 7th, 2020 at 2:14 pm
#1bucfan
Ain’t that the freaking truth. LVD is showing out as DPOY.
October 7th, 2020 at 7:41 pm
Isn’t wearing those purple and gold shoulder pads a NFL uniform violation in Gotohell’s NFL?
October 7th, 2020 at 8:17 pm
Devin is a solid player with a knack for finding the football. Right now, he’s not worth the 5th overall pick in the 2019 draft, but his potential is easy to see. Besides, I’ll take drafting solid players in the first round over busts like Keith McCants any day. 😜