Bad Financial News For Devin White
March 20th, 2022
One way the Bucs could squeeze more room out of their salary cap would be to extend/renegotiate the contract of savior linebacker Devin White.
He’s entering Year 4 of his Bucs tenure, so that is on the table, per NFL rules, if both parties are willing.
However, Mike Florio, the ProFootballTalk.com guru and Playmakers author, penned a piece today about the sagging market for inside linebackers in Day 6 of free agency.
Currently available inside linebackers include Bobby Wagner, Joe Schobert, Anthony Hitchens, Dont’a Hightower, Danny Trevathan, Nick Kwiatkowski, Kyle Van Noy, Jarrad Davis, Jayon Brown, Kwon Alexander, and Reggie Ragland.
Those who have hit the market haven’t gotten gigantic money. Yes, De’Vondre Campbell secured a major contract to stay with the Packers, a five-year $50 million deal (but with only $15 million of it fully guaranteed at signing). Obviously, however, he never became a free agent.
Jordan Hicks, who instantly becomes a starting inside linebacker in Minnesota’s new 3-4 system, signed a two-year, $10 million contract, with $4.45 million fully guaranteed at signing. The deal ties $1 million to per-game roster bonuses. If he plays in 34 games over two seasons, he gets an average of $5 million.
There’s more to the story via the link above. White’ salary is just under $5 million for 2022, but he’ll county nearly double that against this year’s cap. His fifth-year option (2023) would be $11.7 million, if the Bucs exercise it, per reliable Spotrac.com.
Joe wonders if the down market for inside linebackers will make the Bucs re-think how they handle White. The deadline to exercise the fifth-year option is in May. The Bucs and White could agree to a new contract at any time.
March 20th, 2022 at 3:00 pm
Yep, don’t see White liking the current market.
Especially considering his contract predictions prior to being drafted.
I hope the reality of the situation doesn’t affect his play.
March 20th, 2022 at 3:15 pm
Why is this happening? Maybe the change is not good after all?
March 20th, 2022 at 3:29 pm
Not just White….we passed on the opportunity to extend Godwin in his 4th year, as we did Cappa, Davis & Whitehead……the decision to spend money on FAs and go all-in for the SB has it’s costs.
That 5th year option for White is pretty pricey given the market…it will be very interesting to see how this turns out.
Thank goodness we took care of Vea…..
March 20th, 2022 at 3:46 pm
He’s NOT your average middle linebacker tho, he can easily cover tight ends. I wonder if he could be converted to edge rusher? Not many of those, LOTS of ML’s tho
March 20th, 2022 at 3:49 pm
@tbbf
There is no 5th year option for those guys. Only for 1st round picks.
March 20th, 2022 at 3:55 pm
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Yup
March 20th, 2022 at 3:56 pm
Unless you can cover like LVD, the value of run stuffer LBs is diminished. White looked ineffective out there on his own, it was actually disappointing to watch considering what we invested in the guy and all the hype he came with. He’s great when he’s surrounded by JPP, Shaq, LVD, Vea, Suh…..those guys go down and suddenly he’s avg/invisible. Lots of guys are great looking when they have that much talent around them. What you would like to see is he remain effective when its just him. Not dominant but at least effective. He was a complete non factor. This is a big year for him, he needs to clean up his coverage skills and angles of attack. With that said, maybe this is the best time to throw a guaranteed payout his way to see if he bites on a lump sum of cash now vs hoping for something down the road.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:00 pm
TBBF … Excellent point about the cost of spending $$$ on FAs for our SB run versus extending guys like Godwin, Davis, Whitehead & Cappa in their 4th year when the ‘cost’ would’ve been less. We’re now in the process of doing the same thing with not just White, but also SMB, Dean, Edwards & Nelson. With money so potentially tight next year, it could get UGLY because we’re running out of contracts to restructure. And oh ya, some of the owners of those contracts are becoming true grey-beards.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:00 pm
Easily cover? Go back and watch the Rams Divisional game and watch DW try and cover their back up TE before he scores a TD. LOL. DW is a liability in coverage.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:05 pm
Tough call on White. If you make him play the year out and bet on himself, he is likely to succeed. Most likely to get franchised in the future.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:07 pm
I don’t know about committing to this guy long term if he plays like he did last year. Who is the real Devin White? Has he maxed out? He’s one player that might have trade value and it’s reasonable to wonder if the pick(s) we could get in exchange would potentially make us better than investing $$$ in an inconsistent ILB. I have no idea what the organization’s position is on him. Seems like he’s more talk than production.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:07 pm
Bobby m I agree, he has been mostly average, except for the 3 game superbowl run, he should talk with Peyton manning wife, she will tell him Peytons secret it seamed to work for Ray lewis
March 20th, 2022 at 4:20 pm
Don’t extend him.
Draft another IL and light that fire.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:21 pm
how about you don’t worry about the money and be a fan a support the players and team ! your not the GM or a good fan your nothing but a downer
March 20th, 2022 at 4:25 pm
I re watched a cpl of last seasons games and the more I watch them, concentrating heavily on DWhite, the more convinced I am that he is not even an average NFL linebacker, he doesn’t shed blocks, constantly misses tackles, doesn’t cover worth a damn, hardly ever makes a tackle below the waste allowing ball carrier to gain plus yards, seems totally lost on many plays, out of position on many by over pursuing and just an all around mess, most of his “splash plays are actually caused by someone else. He doesn’t deserve a new contract at this time….the Bucs should renegotiate it downward to free up cap $…..make this a “prove it” season.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:25 pm
Bobby M … ‘He (White) is great when he’s surrounded by JPP, Shaq, LVD, Vea, Suh…..those guys go down and suddenly he’s avg/invisible. He was a complete non factor’.
Wow Bobby, ‘COMPLETE non factor’? Let’s see: 87 solo tackles (most on the team); 41 tackle assists (most on the team); 18 QB Hits (2nd most behind Shaq’s 22); 3.5 sacks (most for player not a DT or DE/OLB), 8 TFLs (2nd most behind Shaq’s 9). And oh ya, 17 games played in & started (most on the team for anyone on defense). Oops forgot, 1079 defensive snaps (most on the team … by far).
COMPLETE non factor? Pretty harsh. Were his results as good as his 2020 results? I don’t think so, but not all that far off. But then again, we didn’t win the Super Bowl either. And one reason was because of extensive injuries to defensive players, and that seemed to impact the performance of various position groups quite a bit. Both White & LVD had their own injuries to deal with, and they seemed to linger. That probably impacted their play on the field quite a bit I would guess. Plus it seemed to me that White was being used differently last season than he had been in 2020. But still … COMPLETE non factor? We’re blessed to have not just ONE, but TWO, of the best ILBs in the league.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:26 pm
“Easily cover? Go back and watch the Rams Divisional game and watch DW try and cover their back up TE before he scores a TD. LOL. DW is a liability in coverage.”
He’s FAST enough, freakishly fast–4.42 at the combine. I don’t think Evans is even that fast. Anyhow, I’ve read more than once his duties shifted owing to all the injuries, had him doing stuff outside of his wheelhouse
March 20th, 2022 at 4:27 pm
White was a whole lot of meh last year. Not the guy I remember dominating the playoffs during our Superbowl run..
March 20th, 2022 at 4:27 pm
Our Bucs seem to be looking for a Bargains Galore type Defense after spending all their money on Offense which by the way is not finished with spending. I’m getting the feeling we are gonna find out just how important a good Defense is come December. And WE..are not gonna have one with the way things are going.
Just remember what the Rams did to us with their Defense. And what we were unable to do.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:31 pm
Wish we could go after Will Anderson Jr next year but he’s going top 3 and we just wont be able to move up in the draft.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:44 pm
The way DW talks versus how he plays is night and day. I like DW and he came in and has been boasted as the coming as the next BIG inside backer. I don’t see it.
He should be able to take over a game like he did in our 2020 playoff game against the Saints but it doesn’t happen enough for him to be even considered a top 10 inside backer in my opinion.
Something is missing with him and I cant put my finger on it.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:50 pm
Last year was definitely a step back from 2020 in my opinion. He’s still developing, so as soon as the mental part of his game catches up to his physical abilities and he can play more consistently he’ll be hard for teams to deal with.
He would have to play pretty bad for them to not use that 5th year option.
March 20th, 2022 at 4:57 pm
unbelievable Says:
March 20th, 2022 at 3:49 pm
@tbbf
There is no 5th year option for those guys. Only for 1st round picks.
I realize that but you can still negotiate an extension in their 4th year….giving them a nice raise on their rookie contract in return for savings in later years….
We simply can’t afford to do that because we are spending all the money now to attract other players.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:05 pm
DR
You can add Scotty Miller to that long list of 2019 draft picks in their 4th year…
Yep….when you drat well…..time to pay the piper for good players eventually comes…..
March 20th, 2022 at 5:19 pm
I love Scooter, was bummed when we got AB because it was gonna prevent him from being #3 wideout. Apparently the team doesn’t think he has the ability
March 20th, 2022 at 5:20 pm
Devin white should be a 3rd rounder in a redraft.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:25 pm
Any person saying Devin White isn’t good is either a complete tool or just repeating what others are saying, without any of their own real knowledge.
I believe he’s led the Bucs in solo tackles since he got here, including his rookie year. *Now, full disclosure, I haven’t looked up act stats, that’s just how I remember it.
I watch every Bucs games and I’ve seen Devin White make solo tackles on the regular, every game.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:29 pm
White is a great lb. Pro bowler.
Need to consider jpp banged up. Joe learning. Essentially limited pass rush. Secondary was hurt all season. Our savior for cb was the bottle of cologne.
I expect white to have a monster year.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:29 pm
I forgot david was hurt too
March 20th, 2022 at 5:34 pm
Any person saying Devin White isn’t good is either a complete tool or just repeating what others are saying, without any of their own real knowledge.
I believe he’s led the Bucs in solo tackles since he got here, including his rookie year. *Now, full disclosure, I haven’t looked up act stats, that’s just how I remember it.
I watch every Bucs games and I’ve seen Devin White make solo tackles on the regular, every game.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:36 pm
@bucfan ……….he isn’t nimble with change of direction …….shows no plus athleticism while engaged with or avoiding blockers……. isn’t special when going up against R backs in blitz packages……. constantly to high and out of control tackling ……… constantly off assignment trying to make splash plays with aggressive speed …….
Now he does have top 3 position speed going down hill or shooting angled gaps when coming free and he also has a really proud big Yap………..
Sign another middle and try and trade him for a 3rd on draft day , I bet there will be no takers and you would be lucky to get a fourth ……..What would ( of course speculative ) tell ya !!
March 20th, 2022 at 5:36 pm
DW… is not focused on working
DW … has skated on his God given talent
DW… has more questions than answers
that’s all I know
March 20th, 2022 at 5:38 pm
No way white wants to do this apparently everyone forgot what he said at his pro day but it’s all good I’ll remind you……
Draft me, because when I hit free agency in five years, the price will go up. I’ll be looking for $100 million then.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:46 pm
TBBF … With the addition of Gage (who’s pretty fast himself), got a hunch that Scotty won’t see all that much action this year. He had 53 targets in 2020, but only NINE all last year. My guess is that once AB got signed, Scotty was put on the back burner. Same guess tells me that the same will happen this year now that Gage is here.
I thought because of his speed that the Bucs MIGHT be able to turn him into a punt returner & kick returner. Looking at his S/T snaps over 3 years (3 in 2019, 0 in 2020, 28 in 2021) doesn’t look like he’s got much of a future there. Seems like the kind of player that we keep for 4 years (because we drafted him), then turn him loose.
March 20th, 2022 at 5:49 pm
Pewter Power … ‘Draft me, because when I hit free agency in five years, the price will go up. I’ll be looking for $100 million then.’
BIG difference between Cocky & Confident. Cocky players (most fresh out of college) THINK they’re good. Confident players (top performers who’ve been around for awhile) KNOW they’re good. Got a hunch Devin is getting over his cockiness.
March 20th, 2022 at 6:12 pm
I agree that Scotty will see less action barring injury to the top 3…….one of the three may not make the roster this year…..Miller, Johnson, Darden….my suspicion is that Scotty may be the odd man out because he only has the speed….not the blocking ability and the other two have longer on their rookie contracts….but it may all depend on Brady’s opinion of the three.
I haven’t given up on Johnson or Darden yet as others seem to……they are still very young….I see lots of potential with both of them.
March 20th, 2022 at 6:23 pm
I want White off the field in some 3rd down situations.
I actually wanted to keep MJ Stewart as a backup MLB/SS.
I think sometimes it would be smarter to have White and/or David come off the field in obvious passing situations.
I would run more dime defenses with 0 or 1 MLB plus 1 SS type hybrid player like MJ Stewart. He hit hard but was slow for a DB. However slow for a DB, but he would be fast as hell for a LB.
We need to think outside the box to improve our pass defense this year.
More DBS on the field on 3rd and long and less LBs.
March 20th, 2022 at 6:52 pm
Scotty seeing less action means his roster spot is wide open for him or the guy that can contribute more than Scotty has which after 3 seasons is not much in the big picture. He has earned a long term spot on the Buc sentimental favorite roster and that is all
March 20th, 2022 at 6:53 pm
sorry guys but white is overrated…. he had a good post season run in 21 thats it!!
for him to be a top 5 pick, i was expecting a ray lewis type player…white is nothing close, alot of mouth and not much to back it up. he seems like a great kid but not worth the 5th pick.
March 20th, 2022 at 6:55 pm
@ DR
Scotty Miller was turned into the gunner on the punt team… He actually did a pretty good job.
Seems like he got demoted but at least he is still contributing on some level.
I’m still hoping that SM can contribute more than he did last season. That toe injury had him sidelined for most of the year.
I still think he is probably a better option over J. Darden or T. Johnson at this point.
March 20th, 2022 at 6:59 pm
White didn’t make a single game changing play last season.
0 forced fumbles. fumble recoveries, INTs, and only 3.5 sacks.
What’s worse, I saw him get wiped out on several red zone run plays.
March 20th, 2022 at 7:06 pm
White not only made a game changing play last year….he made a season changing play vs Winston…..
The rest of the team didn’t do their part vs Saints in that game….
March 20th, 2022 at 7:10 pm
Don’t mess around with Devin”s contract and take chance of losing one of the most feared and fastest linebackers in the game today,just keep him in the middle of our defense !!!!We gotta keep him happy!!!
March 20th, 2022 at 7:12 pm
@tbbf – yea my bad i misread your original post.
I think once Brady got here we all knew everything was *all-in right-now* at the expense of the franchise future down the line. Not smart long term, but hey it got us a SB win in year 1 and we were a few plays from going back again last year.
March 20th, 2022 at 7:34 pm
Marine Buc … I forgot about Scotty’s toe injury. Painful, painful, painful. He can surely beat out Darden, and probably Tyler Johnson (unless TJ gets his act together; he showed pretty good promise at one point I thought).
March 20th, 2022 at 7:48 pm
@ DR
I was hopeful TJ would turn the corner – he made some clutch catches two seasons ago but I’m just not feeling it. He struggles to get open because he has mediocre speed and he is very inconsistent at catching the ball.
If we end up signing Julio Jones (or drafting a WR) I have a hard time seeing TJ on this roster.
At least he was only a 5th round pick. Not too much invested.
March 20th, 2022 at 8:00 pm
unbelievable
Perfectly OK to mortgage the future as long as you get something to show for it….
Just think of what the Browns have on the line in their quest to go to their first SB…..3 1sts, a 3rd & 5th & $230……if they don’t make it….it will be very costly to them long-term.
And to think we got Brady for a few bucks & some protein bars…..
March 20th, 2022 at 8:19 pm
Brady knows…
Is DW all in for the team?
Whatever… he’ll always have his film of riding his horsey in the RayJay
March 20th, 2022 at 8:27 pm
What’s the price tag on Bobby Wagner?
March 20th, 2022 at 8:47 pm
Devin White is a more muscular and bigger version of Kwon Alexander. Great athlete, but bad instincts that don’t make him an asset. When LVD doesn’t play the run D stinks almost immediately, because Devin White becomes a serial offender with no one to cleanup behind him.
March 20th, 2022 at 8:48 pm
White is a leader out there. He had one great year and one average year the last two years. I think will see him signing a long term deal about 5 million per year. He has all the potential in the world to be great. His coverage has improved and should keep improving playing with LVD.
March 20th, 2022 at 8:50 pm
White ain’t EVEN close to being a leader!
March 20th, 2022 at 8:58 pm
Florio is wrong every. Single. Step. Of. The. Way. Why would anyone believe what he says about anything related to football?
March 20th, 2022 at 9:03 pm
Dw drank the Super Bowl Kool Aid and thought he was all that and coasted through last season! Hard to say that but the evidence is there. Wake up big guy as you always have to prove it! If you coast you are falling behind letting your self and team mates down.
March 20th, 2022 at 9:09 pm
Marine Buc … Too many other NEEDS to be signing any more WRs, or spending any draft picks on one. We’ve only got 6 picks this year: a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th & two 7ths. The latter 2 are close to worthless IMO (rarely stick), and hopefully we use our 1-2-3 Rnd picks on DT, DE/OLB & CB and the 4th Rnd on a TE or Olineman.
The more I’ve thought about it, the more & more I really like the Logan Ryan signing. Tremendous flexibility (CB or S), and based on our last year’s history, we NEED all the flexibility in our Secondary that we can get.
March 20th, 2022 at 9:20 pm
Love me some Devin White, but he played terrible last year. Too many bad angles, missed tackles, and failure to fill the running gaps. Step it up big man!
March 20th, 2022 at 9:40 pm
@DR, Im serious about this mock, tell me what you think….
1st DT Logan Hall
2nd DE Arnold Ebiketie (might have to trade into mid 2nd)
3rd CB Alontae Taylor
4th RB Brian Robinson (doubt he lasts this far)
then somehow someway, P Matt Araiza
March 20th, 2022 at 9:47 pm
Florio did however make a mention that if Devin is willing to go as a package deal with Brady to San Fran, then he can get a bigger contract. You know, since he’s quadrupling down on Brady still going to San Fran.
March 20th, 2022 at 10:02 pm
He’s a MIDDLE linebacker with 4.4 speed. Some of you people need to take up needlepoint
March 20th, 2022 at 10:48 pm
Wow!
A lot of decent commentary for a Sunday night in the off season!
Some great comments and some… not so much.
But fun string to read
THANKS ALL!
March 20th, 2022 at 10:52 pm
People who think White played terrible last year are what you, what’s the word, idiot – that’s right, complete and total idiots that have no idea what they’re watching.
So follow along idiots… Last year White was asked to play a lot of zone and pass coverage because all the Bucs corners kept getting hurt. Bowles went away from having White run at the QB and wanted to him to be pass coverage LB, which he is not. Then when the corners were finally healthy, all the other LBs around him were injured. If you dopes knew what you were watching, you’d see that teams would literally focus on taking out White, because, get this, they weren’t scared of Minter and whatever other scrubs were out there.
When White was running towards the QB, he was causing major distributions. White should always be running forward on every single play, he should never be backing up and playing in coverage – or doing it exceeding rarely. When White is sent blitzing up the middle, he’s ultra effective, and was still ultra effective last year in that role. The issue was, the number of snap counts where he was blitzing up the middle went down dramatically because of injuries to everyone else, causing a fundamental change in the defense for much of the year.
March 20th, 2022 at 10:54 pm
BTW, to think it was only just over a week ago when all the SB talk was happening — no, not Brady, but when the Florida fanbois had convinced themselves that Trask was going to take the team to the SB. LOL!
March 20th, 2022 at 11:01 pm
come on guys…..
DW is a very good football player, still young, and going to get better…
he was used a little differently last season…and splash plays were at a minimum for him…
yes i would like to see him get 10 sacks a year and make qbs crazy, but bowles switched it up…
is he great?…not yet
but yes he is a very good football player at this point…
can he talk a little less and get more cerebral?…yes…
but the talk also keeps him hyped and twitched up…and that works for him…
he had a heck of a year in 2020…especially the playoffs…
each year is different – always…
we might have to be more concerned about LVD getting older and losing it, long before DW is a crappy football player
March 21st, 2022 at 1:45 am
Wow you fans should not even be called it ,devin white is a beast he is a little tight in agility but he is always around the ball and making hits . he was a pro bowl linebacker last year and you guys are talking like this it’s ridiculous really .
March 21st, 2022 at 5:54 am
MadMax … My favorite site for evaluating draft prospects is Walter Football. That said, their rankings for this upcoming draft have Houston’s Logan Hall listed as the 8th best DE going in Rnds 2-3. Great size though for a DE (6’6″ & 278 lbs) although not very fast (4.88 secs in the 40). Drafting him at #27 seems high, but for sure as a 2nd Rnder (if he’s still there when we pick).
They show Penn State’s Arnold Ebiketie as being the 7th best DE (ahead of Logan Hall), going in Rnds 2-3. Too small for my liking though (6’2″ & 250 lbs), plus he doesn’t appear to be very fast either (4.75 secs in the 40) although he apparently has excellent quickness. Did well at the Senior Bowl, but I still prefer the bigger DE/OLBs like JPP (6’5″ & 275 lbs) who allow more flexibility. Some of the smaller DEs make it, but they seem to be very scheme-dependent.
Of the two, I’d definitely prefer Logan Hall. More like a replacement for JPP in that he’s supposed to be very good against the run, yet big enough to still bring pressure on the QB. Apparently didn’t do much his first 3 seasons, but blew up last year. A big part of that though was how Houston was using him earlier (inside as a DT).
March 21st, 2022 at 6:11 am
White needs to grow up and find consistency. All his woofing is overshadowed by all his whiffing.
March 21st, 2022 at 8:16 am
Devin White is a heck of an athlete. Wish he could get his head in the game more somehow.
March 21st, 2022 at 9:16 am
11-13 mil is probably a good starting pont for an extension. It may seem high now but three years from now and afetr D White possibly turns in another probowl level season (it can happen pessimist, see lavonte w/Schiano vs w/o and remember the grumbling) 13 mil will be fine under the cap
March 21st, 2022 at 11:59 am
@Beeej,
Devin has never been a cover LB except for the Saints Divisional Round and the Super Bowl. At least those 2 stand out as consistent performances. He’s spotty. I can see him improve, but he’s more of a downhill head hunter than a back-pedaling cover guy.
March 21st, 2022 at 12:09 pm
Around the league LBs who don’t rush the passer haven’t been valued. To his credit he has been a pretty good rusher for the position he plays. So that can help him in his case, I will remind others that he stated long ago his desire to be paid very high lol.