Todd Bowles Explains Jordan Whitehead’s Improvement
March 26th, 2024
Todd Bowles
Prior to pivoting to a gluten-free breakfast today of eggs and fruit courtesy of the NFL at the swanky Ritz-Carlton Orlando resort, Joe asked Todd Bowles at a roundtable session about his/new old safety Jordan Whitehead.
Bone-crushing Whitehead is back in Tampa after a two-year hiatus with the Jets and their truly elite defense. Originally, Whitehead was a 2018 fourth-round pick of Tampa Bay and he became a 2020 Bucs postseason hero.
Joe asked Bowles what he saw on Whitehead’s film in New York, and if he’s seeing a better player.
“I thought he matured,” Bowles replied. “I thought his hands worked extremely well with the Jets. He played back deep a lot better. He understood quarters and half-coverage, where we used him more around the line of scrimmage; we used him back some. I think he became a very good third-down player. He was still young when we had him and he matured a lot over the years.”
Bowles gave a dissertation-like explanation of “chess pieces” that Joe will share later, and Whitehead is one of those pieces to go along with his elite communication skills, Bowles explained.
Joe can’t wait to see how Bowles uses Whitehead and All-Pro Antoine Winfield Jr. together again. The head coach said they’re the “two quickest [safeties] I’ve coached.”
March 26th, 2024 at 10:03 am
Gluten-free = Less farts. I’m fired up that they got Whitehead back, I was angry when they let him walk.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:06 am
I have a problem finding free gluten anywhere these days.
Todd should have just said “we messed up”
March 26th, 2024 at 10:12 am
Whitehead was not re-signed due to cap issues and other Safeties on the team. Bucs realized they made a mistake and corrected it.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:14 am
They didn’t mess up, they had to allow him to leave because they didn’t have the cap-space. As soon as they cleared it, they went & got him back.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:16 am
The head coach said they’re the “two quickest [safeties] I’ve coached.”
Speed kills, blows up plays. Has anyone said that the Bucs Need a dominate Edge Rusher??? Anyone Joe? You did not mention it in this article.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:22 am
Jason Licht has apologized publicly and online for the decision to let Jordan go to the Jets. Glad he’s back and the Bucs secondary will be greatly appreciated improved because of it.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:34 am
Reality Check
Neil had a WAY BETTER resume. PFF had him as one of the top-rated Safeties in the league when the Bucs brought him in. It seemed like an upgrade. Bucs learned the grass isn’t always greener.
March 26th, 2024 at 10:45 am
@Sly you’re close but off target. The Bucs did learn that lesson. However, it wasn’t really Neal who taught it. Jordan left two years ago. Not last year. The Bucs chose Mike Edwards who graded out better in coverage in 2020/2021 than Jordan at the time. Since then Jordan has been a good football player and Edwards personal performance has fallen off despite his teams success.
Resigning Edwards over Whitehead was the mistake.
March 26th, 2024 at 11:51 am
Sly,
There is definitely a difference between getting a player who was highly regarded in a different scheme and hoping that his results translate to a new scheme vs going out and getting someone who has had previous success in the teams scheme.
March 26th, 2024 at 12:30 pm
Boss Says:
March 26th, 2024 at 10:06 am
I have a problem finding free gluten anywhere these days
I know, $3.50 a loaf.
March 26th, 2024 at 1:04 pm
I like how Licht apologized to LVD for letting Whitehead get away for those two years. Very telling
March 26th, 2024 at 1:21 pm
Whitehead is not the perfect smaller safety that Winfield Jr is –
But he brings the wood like an oldschool safety and he’s smart and versatile. Also somewhat of a ballhawk when he gets those chances in coverage.
I think the difference we see on the field from Whitehead paired with Winfield – compared to what we saw from Ryan Neal last year – will be a stark contrast. For the better obviously…..
Pretty sure our secondary will be absolutely better in 2024 than it was in 2023 – despite trading our “best” CB….
McCollum is an athletic freak and seems ready to step up.
Gotta have a pass rush for these talented secondary guys to shine though….
March 26th, 2024 at 3:52 pm
Didn’t make sense getting rid of Whitehead or Edwards. They both signed cheap deals. Or that we didn’t bring back Logan Ryan. Not many blunders with this front office, but the way they quickly dismantled one of the best safety rooms was a headscratcher
March 26th, 2024 at 5:49 pm
Gluten free, vegan, plant-based, and other healthy foods are the way to go!
Good hearing about Todd’s thoughts now about Whitehead. Glad Jordan is back where he should be. A dynamic twosome Winfield and Whitehead. Go Bucs!