Lavonte Talks Mentor Plan
January 4th, 2016
Lavonte David and Joe had quiet time today at One Buc Palace, and David shared one thing that will be a focus of his offseason.
David said he will be mentor-in-chief to 21-year-old rookie sensation Kwon Alexander.
“Kwon is a young guy, you know, he needs and older guy like me to be in his head this offseason,” David said. “So I’ll reach out to him as much as I can, and we already plan on working out together.
David was very close with former Bucs middle linebacker Mason Foster (2011-2014). The two trained together on their own time, often joined by Danny Lansanah. In addition to the friendship, David said it’s important to him to keep the team unity through the winter time off.
“That’s just the guy I am, man. I’m cool with everybody in the locker room. I’m cool especially within my group of [linebackers],” David said.
Joe’s cool with that, and it’s great to know Alexander won’t be on an island this offseason, left alone to think about his costly four-game suspension and the October death of his brother.
Look for more from Joe’s chat with David in the coming days.
January 4th, 2016 at 3:01 pm
FIRE LOVIE….”SIMPLE AS THAT”…
January 4th, 2016 at 3:06 pm
If it was as simple as that we wouldn’t have the Bucs, Browns, Jags, and the other perennial bottom dwellers.
If all you had to do was pick the right coach and it was an easy and obvious thing to do why haven’t we done it? Oh the Glazers. What about all the other NFL teams that have a losing culture.
Does it not say something about our rep when coaches like Parcells and Kelly turn down the offer to coach the Bucs? Parcells I get but Reid? IE Any college coach who is hot enough to be considered won’t consider the Bucs.
January 4th, 2016 at 3:06 pm
Hire Tom Coughlin
January 4th, 2016 at 3:12 pm
Hey LVD, you have enough holes in your game to occupy yourself. Maybe focus a little more on your own game and you’ll hang on to a few of those interceptions that hit you in the bleeping hands.
January 4th, 2016 at 3:25 pm
WE HEAR THE SAME CRAP OVER AND OVER FROM TEAM PLAYERS AND LOVIE OF HOW THERE GOING TO CHANGE OR GET BETTERAND NEXT WEEK IT THE SAME OLD SPIT, AND YOU GET SICK OF HEARING IT, TWO YEARS OF IT , NO IMPROVEMENT, THERE BREAKING ALL KINDS OF RECORDS AND THERE NOT THE GOOD ONES YOU WANT TO HEAR ABOUT EITHER……. FIRE LOVIE OR PUT UP WITH ANOTHER LOST SEASON 2016 !!!
January 4th, 2016 at 3:26 pm
Hopefully you make the All-Pro List Lavonte
Yo Licht! Sign Nigel Bradham
(2016 Possible LB Line-Up)
• Lavonte David
• Kwon Alexander
• Nigel Bradham
January 4th, 2016 at 3:37 pm
Good for LVD……LVD you can start by suggesting NFL approved energy drinks…
January 4th, 2016 at 4:40 pm
I hope LVD isn’t one of the ones that Jameis referenced yesterday.
January 4th, 2016 at 5:06 pm
I’m not down on GMC like a lot of other posters, but I think he was the main guy Jameis was referring to. Losing doesn’t seem to really bother McCoy IMO.
January 4th, 2016 at 5:06 pm
If you all are going to call for Lovie’s job all off season, please at least be creative. I have a Buc history box with my ‘Throw McKay in the Bay’ and ‘Jerk the Perk’ t-shirts.
January 4th, 2016 at 5:12 pm
Keep the “energy drinks” out of his reach, Lavonte
January 4th, 2016 at 5:14 pm
If we’re going to play the “who was Jameis talking about” I’m not so sure GMC is at the top of his list. GMC played hurt through most of this year. He lead his team in sacks and was among the league leading DT’s.
I get that people here tend to hate the Merlin Olsen, Leroy Selmon and other “nice” guys who have succeeded on the DL. But while I may question GMC’s leadership abilities he can definitely play his position. Now this is #3’s team along with Kwon.
#3 may have been talking about ASJ and ME two receivers who have personally let him down severely as well as disappointing Buc fans everywhere. I do not see any other real attitude problems.
January 4th, 2016 at 5:21 pm
Ah is it me or did Kwon seem more important to the defense this year than Lavonte?
Lavonte needs to work on his own mental toughness and ability to inspire players around him this offseason.
He spoke often this year of the normal game to game adversity that would wipe out the defense’s confidence and lead to frequent collapses and he did nothing about it.
Lavonte should be seeking a mentor of his own.
I love the guy, but he has some major issues if he wants to become elite or get the kind of recognition that Luke Kuechly gets.
Siege this!
Go Sucs!
Losers again!
January 4th, 2016 at 5:34 pm
I think it is GMC picking guys off the ground and wanting to play patty cake after games with the opposing “Winning” team versus Jameis wanting to mix it up with the opposing players. GMC is at the top of my list. Maybe some of the CBs during the year had the same “Loser” mentality. That’s why some of them got benched. Maybe Mike Evans to a certain extent. EDS probably on that list.
How about “Movie Lovie”; “Leavie Lovie”; “Thurston (Bucs) files for divorce from Lovie”
January 4th, 2016 at 5:58 pm
Does evey post have to have a multitude of “fire Lovie”…..through the entire off season….this article is about LVD mentoring Kwon.
I can only assume that these posters know nothing about the subject of the article and are compelled to show their ignorance.
It seems to me that since Lovie has been retained…..they could at least wait for him to lose another game before starting the calls for his dismissal.
I wonder how if feels for them to be totally powerless….it’s very sad.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:03 pm
@ St. Pete
I doubt Evans was the subject of Winston’s comment……Evans works very hard and puts forth maximum effort from what I can see….sure he’s dropped some passes….but his passion is what has caused problems for him.
I don’t necessarily think Jameis was calling out one player….perhaps a group of players….who knows….we may really never know for sure.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:05 pm
Reminds me so much of brooks.
A quiet , let the play of the talking, leader.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:16 pm
I understand what buc fan are going through….I was around when L.Bennett,R Williamson,R Perkins and S. Walsh was coaching here……for those who do remember B.Belicick was fired in Cleveland. ..the Giants was about to fired B. Parcells when he be came great….give Lovie a chance remember this is like his 1st year be cause of that mess left from last year with no O.C and the last coach…if the same crap start at the beginning of 16 he should immediately be fired
January 4th, 2016 at 6:37 pm
@Tampabaybucfan … ‘I don’t necessarily think Jameis was calling out one player….perhaps a group of players….who knows….we may really never know for sure.’
My take on it also. Jameis is obviously very passionate in his love of the game, and in his desire to win. All his life he’s been on winning teams, and he HATES losing. That’s exactly what the Bucs need for a franchise QB … someone who HATES losing.
The Bucs as a franchise may have developed a culture of losing, but I doubt that individual players have. Just about all of the current Bucs played on winning college teams. And they were key players on those teams. I have a tough time believing that any of them enjoy losing.
NFL players are all the best of the best. Probably why parity is so prevalent in the NFL nowadays. And yet, some teams do stand out as being consistently better than others, at least for several years. Teams like New England, Seattle, Arizona and several others. They have strong organizations from top to bottom … they draft well, they coach well, they develop their players well, they have strong team leadership. The Bucs were one of those teams at one time (starting several years prior to our SB win), but the Glazers blew that up far as I’m concerned. Takes time to rebuild that type of organization, and it’s certainly not done by changing coaches every 2 years as I would hope we’ve learned by now.
We’ve had a couple of good drafts now, and hopefully this next one will be just as good. If I were the Glazers, I’d be more concerned with whether or not this coaching staff can develop these young players properly than with anything else right now. And not just the HC, but each and every coach that the Glazers are paying for. They all have an impact on player development.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:49 pm
@ Defense
Absolutely….actually I think he was calling out several players…and….”if the shoe fits”
I believe that the Bucs Ownership, GM & Coaches will support Jameis’ leadership….I believe they will cut players that don’t follow him and may keep players he wants…..he named Humphries as one of the players who gets it.
In the NFL there is very little real difference in talent with many players….but it’s the heart that can make the difference….you can take a player like Humphries and mold him into a superstar because of his attitude and his work ethic.
Many Bucs are still very young and I haven’t given up on them yet…..ASJ, Evans, Sims, Marpet, Smith……Alexander…..I am very excited about their future and what they can do for this team.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:55 pm
JollyBucsFan Says:
January 4th, 2016 at 3:06 pm
Hire Tom Coughlin
Lmao! You win!
January 4th, 2016 at 7:32 pm
If I was LVD’s agent, I’d advise him to arrange a meeting between him, Kwon, Danny Lansannah, D. Brooks, Hardy, and Shelton Quarles, or I’d offer to do it for him. The purpose of the meeting would be simple: find out what it takes to get to a Super Bowl, and what must the LB crew do to help reach that goal.
January 4th, 2016 at 7:34 pm
“Does evey post have to have a multitude of “fire Lovie””
it is their “passion”, just like with evans, so it is ok.
January 4th, 2016 at 7:44 pm
I think everybody that is hating on Lavonte needs to pump the breaks a bit. Dude was 3rd in the league in tackles this year. He is far from the problem.
January 4th, 2016 at 7:48 pm
I think we should give Lovie at least until the 3rd or 4th game this coming year. If we get the same crap show him the door…remember this is like the first year for Lovie due too the mess left by the previous coach and the big mess with the O.C last year.
January 4th, 2016 at 9:04 pm
TBBF..it’s Black Monday man. They’ll calm down soon enough.
January 4th, 2016 at 9:06 pm
I don’t think anyone is hating on Lavonte.
Fact is he’s nothing like #55. Brooks was a leader and he’d never let his defense break mentally (multiple times over the season). He was a vocal leader and he’d let his play do the talking.
I like Lavonte and I hope he can make that jump to truly be elite at his position.
You can’t be the best and also be part of a horrible defense that can’t get through any adversity.
Lavonte needs to get better, simple as that.
Siege this!
Go Sucs!
Losers again!
January 4th, 2016 at 9:19 pm
Many so called Buc fans are also apart of the loser mentality when we constantly ramp up negativity even when it does not exist in some situations with this team. I hear people like Elio t continually call them losers when thats exactly what we don’t want them to be. If we truly want to see then win than we as fans need to start treating this team like winners including our head coach!
January 4th, 2016 at 9:50 pm
Alan…put down the pipe.
January 4th, 2016 at 9:55 pm
I love the Bucs and think Lavonte finished strong but let’s not forget the bad beginning of the season he had….once kwon got rolling our defense shined and Lvd started balling….the Dline gets Zero pressure!!! Its nice that our backers get sacks here and there but in this D the linemen need to get to the Qb!!! We are a good De away from really revving it up, injurys also hurt us at the. Please get rid of Jenkins he is bad