It was quite the lively joint practice on Wednesday between the New York Jets and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. What made the morning a spectacle to behold were all of the fights between players from each side. While it seemed hard to keep track of, there were six known skirmishes between both teams.

At the center of it all was Bucs’ inside linebacker Lavonte David. While the grizzly veteran is not known for making a scene and usually breaks up fights, David decided to bring the Florida heat to New Jersey.

He got into it after a play early on in team drills against Jets offensive lineman Billy Turner, while later on it appeared he was ready to throw down with defensive back Brandin Echols near the sideline. That one was the most noteworthy, as the players needed to be separated. David was restrained by safety Ryan Neal and defensive lineman Will Gholston.

Bucs Got The Most Out Of Facing Aaron Rodgers And The Jets, Says David

That was just what happened after the whistle. Throughout the morning, Lavonte David and the Buccaneers’ defense had the task of stopping a new-look offense. They put together some quality sequences getting after quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and to a lesser extent, Zach Wilson. David spoke about the work put in against a Jets team that is aspiring for the Super Bowl and has garnered a lot of hype for being able to make some noise for the first time in a while.

Jets QB Aaron Rodgers – Photo by: Adam Slivon/PR

“Today we got the best out of it getting some great work in against a great football team, and we are going to go from there,” David said after practice. “Tomorrow we are going to go practice against ourselves and try to get better.”

While they are going to practice against themselves after practice in East Rutherford at the Giants facility Thursday, David spoke about the challenges of facing a Jets’ offense led by no other than 4x NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers.

“A-Rod is a hall-of-fame quarterback,” David added. “Any chance you go against him, seeing how he operates and stuff like that, it really [trains you well]. Going against our team day in and day out, having different looks is definitely a challenge with new responsibilities.”

It was a collective effort to limit Rodgers and company from completely taking over. With the Jets beating the Panthers 27-0 in the preseason opener, the Bucs’ defense will need to be at the top of their game to make it competitive.

Yes, it is only the preseason, but now is as good of a time as ever to make a statement as a team not willing to lay down and concede to a more threatening opponent.

Lavonte David Is Happy With How The Bucs’ Defense Did

For the most part, it was a quality effort by Lavonte David and others on the defense to make plays. While it is hard to fully contain Rodgers and his new favorite target Garrett Wilson, David was overall satisfied with the unit’s performance.

“Pretty solid, man,” David said of the defense’s day. “Going against a different football team, different look, turned out pretty well. Guys locking in, communicating, and seeing something different. It kind of turned out the way it we needed it to, but we got to go back to the film and watch it on our own and see how it goes from there.”

Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett – Photo by: Adam Slivon/PR

Plenty of Bucs were locked on defense. Those who impressed the most included outside linebackers Anthony Nelson, Shaq Barrett and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, and defensive tackle Logan Hall. Nelson recorded a pick-six on Zach Wilson while Barrett had two sacks and Tryon-Shoyinka and Hall pinched in one apiece while applying pressure.

Within the secondary, cornerback Carlton Davis III had two pass breakups and undrafted rookie safety Derrek Pitts Jr. had another. Besides Garrett Wilson, it seemed to be a no-fly zone for the Jets’ offense.

For a defensive pass rush that lost much of its core identity after Barrett tore his Achilles tendon, signs of growth emerged after seeing Barrett and others active in the backfield. That aided the defensive backfield’s efforts in not having to cover the Jets’ weapons for too long.

If today’s practice was any indication, the Bucs, and especially their defense, have no plans on backing down.