Lavonte David Still Upset With Past Snubs
May 25th, 2021
Knows he is underrated.
Year after year since the day he was drafted by the Bucs, linebacker Lavonte David has been among the league leaders in tackles and other key stats.
Yet year after year the guy is flipped the bird by voters to the Pro Bowl and stiffed, all but one year.
That one year was 2015. Months before that, with the Super Bowl held in Phoenix, David sucked it up and did something he really hates to do — promote himself on radio row.
It worked.
(Joe is not suggesting David hates the press. He doesn’t and is very cooperative and polite. David isn’t anti-media, just doing interviews is not his cup of tea. He will take time with reporters. He’s friendly but he just doesn’t like being taken away from focusing on his job. For David to go to radio row and promote himself, that must have been his adult equivalent to a child eating spinach. Away from One Buc Palace and in a one-on-one situation, David is much more relaxed.)
And while David had his typical good year last year — finally for a good team — and was even named second-team All-Pro, once again he got stiffed by Pro Bowl selectors.
What does the guy have to do outside of work radio row at a Super Bowl?
During a sitdown with Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire, David said he is still peeved about not making a Pro Bowl the past five years.
Doug Farrar: Since your rookie season of 2012, you rank first among linebackers in starts (137). solo tackles (806), and tackles for loss (128). Your 24 forced fumbles ranks first among off-ball linebackers over that time. And you’ve been excellent in coverage. How is it, then, that you’ve only made one Pro Bowl and have just one All-Pro nod? Do you feel that you’re underrated? Because it sure looks like it.
Lavonte David: Yeah, of course I feel underrated, man. You know how the game goes. Been putting up all these numbers, but nobody was seeing it because I was on a team that wasn’t winning a lot of games, and we weren’t on national television. I still feel like I’m underrated, but times are changing. Now, we get the opportunity to play a lot of nationally televised games, and people get to see and appreciate the things I put out there. No matter what, though, I get to go out there and have the opportunity to play this game I love, and that’s what I’m going to to. People can decide if I’m top-notch or not, but me personally, I know what my peers think. This last year, I didn’t make the Pro Bowl, but I did make Second-Team All-Pro. So, it’s all good. But at the end of the day, I know my worth, and I know what I put out there on the field. I know I’m one of the best to play this position.
Well, if it helped, David got a lot of love during the Super Bowl broadcast from Jim Nantz and Tony Romo for the job he did containing if not shutting down the best tight end in the game, Travis Kelce.
David was all over him in that championship win.
It’s a crying shame David has missed out on so many Pro Bowls (and who knows how many thousands of dollars in bonus money) only because the team he played on prior to 2020 smelled like a used Porta-Potty in the middle of a Florida summer.
May 25th, 2021 at 9:09 am
Keep using that as the chip on your shoulder! Go Bucs!
May 25th, 2021 at 9:14 am
Lavonte held Kelce to 5 catches for just 23 yards in coverage during the SB. I don’t know the prospects for him because he has been snubbed for so long but he’s a HOFer for sure.
May 25th, 2021 at 9:27 am
There is no doubt the lack of prime time games hasn’t helped , but shouldn’t the organization be to blame in how they market their star talent ? Surely there must be a Pr team that does this right ?
May 25th, 2021 at 9:33 am
Lavonte can say whatever he wants now. He’s a champion & he earned the right to speak the truth.
May 25th, 2021 at 9:40 am
Whatever keeps the fire burning. This is a special team Bucs fans. Time to prepare for another fun season.
May 25th, 2021 at 9:40 am
Love David. Not only a great player but a true leader for the Bucs D. David and White have to be the best pair of off-ball linebackers in the game.
May 25th, 2021 at 10:09 am
Hopefully he pulls a Tom Brady and let’s this latest snub to fuel his best season as a professional.
May 25th, 2021 at 10:21 am
We, as Buc fans have always known that LVD is a probowler……how great it was for us to sign him again and keep him with Devin White…..we undoubtedly have the best LBs in the league.
May 25th, 2021 at 10:24 am
It sounds like Grump wasn’t the only one to have votes stolen! 😉 – I jest!
David & Paul Gruber are atop the list of great Bucs to not receive their Pro-Bowl due. It’s shameful that so many great players played, on all teams, in Pro-Bowl anonymity because their team wasn’t great and/or were in a small market.
I wish the NFL would disallow the fan-voting and simply fill-out the meaningless Pro-Bowl roster with 1st & 2nd team All-Pros.
May 25th, 2021 at 10:36 am
He has (or will have) his ring. I promise he’d trade 10 pro bowls for that ring.
May 25th, 2021 at 11:00 am
David has had a hof career but there are/were a lot of factors against him. Sh!tty pro bowl selectors is the biggest one. Off ball outside linebackers who aren’t edge rushers always get overlooked, he played for mostly gosh awful teams, and he didn’t play for a team in the northeast. If he had played middle linebacker for most of his career, he likely would have stolen some pro bowls/all pro nods from Wagner and Kuechly since he is a superior player.
May 25th, 2021 at 11:06 am
Lavonte can always console himself with a quick peek at his Financial Statement….
May 25th, 2021 at 11:28 am
LVD has to retire a BUC!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
May 25th, 2021 at 11:51 am
This is why pro bowls should be meaningless to hall of fame or ring of honor inductions. It’s a popularity contest, he’ll have the same numbers he always has this year and miraculously get voted to the pro bowl. Definitely should go into the ring of honor before Geraldine as he has always been most consistent and reliable
May 25th, 2021 at 12:30 pm
Keep in mind that we absolutely STUNK up the joint in nationally televised games last year minus the playoffs.
May 25th, 2021 at 12:31 pm
He’s got a ring though. Most of the guys they rank ahead of him dont.
We know who he is and what he does. Wreck shop.
May 25th, 2021 at 1:03 pm
The only thing that matters is not the different slights that LVD has endured. It is knowing within himself and his teammates that he was legit and consistent. He started out doing better then D Brooks, if anyone remembers when he played in “the Fighting Schianos” Defense. But when Lovie became coach, LVD was just not the same, Lovie (coach my scheme) did not apply LVD’s talent the right way and it took a couple of years for LVD to get his mojo back. He is a straight out baller, and very glad he was willing to stay a Buc. BTW Kelce knows his name, lol, and the rest of the KC Mahomeboys do too. He is getting his publicity now, and that will continue with this Brady led winner that the Bucs are. GO LVD and GO BUCS!!!!!!!
May 25th, 2021 at 3:29 pm
Buc fans know and we’re ticked off too. Have been for many many years. There has been no more underrated player in the league. We ought to just put him in the Ring of Honor right now.
May 25th, 2021 at 5:22 pm
LVD is Chapter 1 of our Super Bowl. He led, motivated, and made the defense awesome. Chapter 2 is Mike Evans, Godwin, etc. Brady CHOSE to play for the Bucs as he knew the talent and chemistry. LVD was the big reason why. Great receivers, underrated but great defense. Brady knew what he was doing. The Pro Bowl might not know LVD, but Brady sure did. I believe LVD was the 1st player Brady called. Brady led us to a Super Bowl, and LVD led us to get Brady. The team wanted only 1 player, LVD, out there as the team leader at the Super Bowl coin toss. It might be too late for him to get the publicity for a HOF, but Ring of Honor and number retired are already deserved.
May 25th, 2021 at 6:03 pm
All the pro bowls missed is probably the only way the Bucs could afford him. How much would he cost with 5 pro bowls?
May 25th, 2021 at 7:08 pm
We need 2 more years of him feeling slighted
May 25th, 2021 at 8:22 pm
With his numbers and durability he should make the hall of fame.It really.goes to.show what a joke the pro bowl is and why nobody watches it. Its a joke….Bunch of self.glorified clowns that vote for their “boyz” rather than showing respect from recognition of individual play
May 26th, 2021 at 5:50 pm
Damn straight dude.
May 26th, 2021 at 6:23 pm
LVD WILL one day be in the “Ring of Honor” at RJS and in the HOF in Canton alongside D. Brooks and the rest . It would be tragic for him to not retire with any other Team ! I believe that scenario will never happen ! He’s a BUC 4 LIFE !