Lavonte David Proving To Be Rated
January 5th, 2022
Bucs linebacker chatter.
For years Joe always typed how Lavonte David was horribly underrated.
The guy would put up numbers comparable Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner, but because those linebackers played on winning teams, they got tons of run and David didn’t. And because David preferred being in the background than speaking out, and because he played on the NFL’s fire hydrant in a dog park, David was annually shafted for the Pro Bowl.
Mina Kimes of BSPN all but said recently in a broadcast of “NFL Live” that she too was one of those who overlooked David. But then she saw the Bucs defense play Sunday without him.
Kimes was appalled at how the alleged best-run defense in the NFL was gouged by the lowlife Jets. And then she had an epiphany: That wouldn’t have happened if David was on the field.
“Did you watch the Jets game, guys?” Kimes said when former Miss St. Petersburg and Miss Florida Laura Rutledge asked Kimes if the Bucs missed David. Kimes added the void left by David “is massive.”
The Jets were running away from Vita Vea and away from the middle of the Bucs defense with off-tackle runs, Kimes claimed. If David were playing, she said those would be run-stops by the Bucs’ wily veteran.
Kimes confessed Jason Pierre-Paul and Bucs sack king Shaq Barrett being out didn’t help, but David’s absence was critical she emphasized.
Then Kimes noted how much Devin White misses David. Joe’s glad she pointed this out.
In the most recent edition of the “Ira Kaufman Podcast,” which published last night, Joe asked Ira if White was lost without David playing alongside him. When David missed games earlier this year, White wasn’t his old self, and again on Sunday he didn’t look anything close to the linebacker we’ve come to expect.
In closing, Kimes added of David, “He’s one of the most underrated linebackers in the last decade.”
Joe’s happy someone with a large platform is seeing the light and speaking the truth.
People say the Bucs will sorely miss furniture-tossing, bicycle-winging, tantrum-throwing quitter Antonio Brown. And they’re not wrong. But without David, the Bucs are big-time vulnerable.
You can see and hear Kimes’ full breakdown in the video below.
I’ve never appreciated the great Lavonte David quite so much as I did watching the Bucs almost lose to the Jets. Getting him back for the postseason will be HUGE. pic.twitter.com/KDG6bfKDs3
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) January 4, 2022
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January 5th, 2022 at 5:55 am
She has a point. Minter looked slow and plodding comparatively speaking and without our best OLBs the Jets were able to key on inside players like Vea and Suh. We looked very average against a crappy Jets team without LVD and company.
January 5th, 2022 at 6:08 am
every buc fan knows David is the best on the league. Maybe if JPP n Shaq we’re there the run defense might have bin a little better but seriously we need LVD back there with white they are like ying n yang. Get healthy LVD. All our fans wish you a speedy recovery and we all love you LVD
January 5th, 2022 at 6:15 am
Let’s not forget a few of those early runs, no Dean and no SMB, literally half the defense
January 5th, 2022 at 6:50 am
This year has been cursed. This team gets players on IR if the breeze is too strong. Pathetic. Richard Sherman is the poster boy for injured useless players on this team.
January 5th, 2022 at 7:10 am
Let’s also remember that those officials did not call offensive holding once all game, IIRC (on either team, granted). We saw replay of one key run on the Jets’ last possession where both #56 and #45 were held. Not saying it happened every play, and I don’t have the time to break down the whole tape, but if it is never called, the referee isn’t looking.
That said, the Bucs definitely need more speed at inside linebacker. Even before the injury, LVD looked to me to be losing a step, and he ain’t getting no younger. Free-agent market this offseason?
January 5th, 2022 at 7:51 am
Top 25 Linebacker of all time!
Top 15 WLB of All-Time!
Check the numbers!
January 5th, 2022 at 8:03 am
It’s interesting how much we miss David. When White is out and David is playing, Minter looks much better in my opinion.
January 5th, 2022 at 8:13 am
Bucsfanman … Interesting point about Minter looking ‘slow and plodding comparatively speaking’. He seems to play much better further inside IMO (classic MLB?) than when he’s further outside. When he subbed for White earlier & played with LVD, Minter looked a lot better IMO than he did Sunday.
And for those saying that LVD’s lost a step due to age, that MAY be so, but he’s been nursing a bum ankle for quite awhile this season (since the Miami game back on 10 Oct). Missed 2 games after that, and I doubt that it ever really healed up totally. It probably impacted his play since he returned for the Saints game on 31 Oct. Same MAY hold true when & if he returns for the 1st playoff game. Ankles can take a long time to heal properly as we both know.
January 5th, 2022 at 8:38 am
The Bucs also couldn’t suit up their starting OLBs, JPP and Shaq. The backups just aren’t remotely as capable of sealing the edge off to a runner, especially Tryon-Shoyinka. Even a Pop Warner League coach would see and exploit that vulnerability.
January 5th, 2022 at 8:48 am
Minter had a bad game. He will bounce back.
January 5th, 2022 at 9:51 am
Yeah I think Desir missed a tackle or two in the edge that dean or smb generally clean up. Wasn’t just David. Also jpp and barett better edge setters than the backups
January 5th, 2022 at 10:27 am
Minter is a good LB. I just think he was trying to do to much to make up for LVD not in the lineup & he certainly didn’t get much help from 45.
January 5th, 2022 at 10:38 am
I was impressed with Nelson. The way JPP has been playing Nelson may not be a bad option. The crossing sweeps Shaq and LVD stop thos ALL day. Josh Allen ran off tackle left side also, it’s apparently a weak spot in the D as the 10-15 yd pass down the middle is. If any of you have a chance to watch man in the arena episode 3, it describes the 2004 SB Patriots, pretty telling and obvious this Bucs team lacks those qualities.
January 5th, 2022 at 12:22 pm
Unfortunately, it does not appear that Lavonte will be ready for the first playoff game. Hopefully, he will be ready for subsequent games when we will need him the most.
The presence of David and Barrett will be critical in any legitimate chance for a run for the Lombardi.
Go Bucs!
January 5th, 2022 at 12:53 pm
Love me some Mina!
January 5th, 2022 at 2:16 pm
We def need jpp and shaquil back for sure for the playoffs, also AB i lost def all respect for that was bs, we need giys to step it up, we still got this LFGO tampa bay all the way!!!!!!
January 5th, 2022 at 2:37 pm
I agree since I posted this almost word for word last night. Brady has said LVD is one of the best linebackers of all time. For some reason the media, who quotes everything Tom said, never ran with it. I love Vita , but the Bucs still led the NFL in rush defense even when Vea was injured.
He was second fiddle in publicity to Kwon Alexander until Kwon left for mediocrity. I read this once OVER 2 YEARS ago . Why is it that he is in the same club as the legendary Ray Lewis, but gets no credit?
This was over 2 years ago!!! ::
Surpassing the 1,000-tackle mark through eight seasons also allowed David to join an extremely exclusive NFL list. He and Hall-of-Famer Ray Lewis, the former Baltimore Ravens linebacker, are the only two players since the sack became an official statistic in 1982 to record at least 1,000 tackles, at least 20 sacks and at least 10 interceptions through their first eight NFL seasons.
Other than Joe, even the local media take him for granted because he is not a self promoter and is very rarely injured.
January 5th, 2022 at 10:38 pm
FINALLY! She’s never been more accurate! Minter and leveon looked like they were running in quicksand