Week 8 was a forgettable performance for Bucs captain Devin White. In addition to poor play in run defense and as a pass rusher, White had three critical personal foul penalties on Sunday. His lack of discipline massively cost the Bucs defense, resulting in several Saints’ scores. Now the NFL is disciplining White, fining him over $25,000 for two of his infractions, per Greg Auman.

In fairness to White, his unnecessary roughness penalty was laughable. He barely touched Siemian’s facemask while trying to knock down the quarterback’s desperation throw. The penalty turned a 3rd-and-12 from the Bucs 26 into a 1st-and-10 from the Tampa Bay 14. The Saints would ultimately kick a field goal to take a 10-7 lead in the second quarter.

But White is being fined over $15,000 for his horse collar tackle of Saints quarterback Jameis Winston. The tackle left Winston with a torn ACL. Officials said White grabbed the nameplate to tackle Winston, which players are not allowed to do. It was obviously not intentional, just a reaction as the quarterback tried to run by him. Fining the linebacker for that is pretty rich, even if it is a penalty.

White’s third personal foul of the game was the most impactful and most avoidable. After a tackle on Mark Ingram, White stood over the veteran running back and shouted in his face. Flags immediately flew for taunting, moving the ball to the Bucs 35-yard line. The Saints ultimately kicked a field goal to go up 26-21.

After the game, White addressed his penalties to the media.

Bucs HC Bruce Arians and LB Devin White – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“I was just playing hard,” White said. “Speaking on my part, I was just playing hard. The [horse collar] call on Jameis (Winston), with his momentum going forward. I’ll go back and look at it, but I thought I had him in his pads. They said my hands were too high on his nameplate. So I’ll take that one.

“On the [unnecessary roughness], I was just trying to finish the play. On the sideline (taunting penalty), that was all me. I take full responsibility. Me and Mark Ingram were jawing all night, just going back and forth at each other. But it’s always one-sided when you’re in someone else’s house. It was nothing personal going on with us. We talked at the end of the game, and he respected the way I play the game.”

White’s comments indicate mixed levels of responsibility for his actions. On one hand he says, “I take full responsibility”. But in the next breath, he suggests home-cooking calls by the officials inside the Superdome. His frustration is understandable, but by the NFL’s taunting rules, what he did should always be a penalty.

“I’m just going to keep being me,” White said. “I’m a fiery guy and I like to talk. But now I’ll look at the ground when I’m talking to someone so I can save the penalty for my team. At the end of the day, it’s all about the team. But I still have to play with passion and energy when I’m out here.”