Bucs head coach Todd Bowles spoke to the media on Monday morning following the team’s 31-23 loss to the Lions on Sunday. Following a tough defeat, Bowles shared his thoughts on what will be a tough few months of decision-making for the futures of inside linebackers Lavonte David and Devin White in Tampa Bay.

It is a future that Bowles is likely to be a part of following a 9-8 season and a playoff win, but regardless, it will not be the same team when they suit up again for the 2024 season. Two of the bigger decisions the team faces come on defense with David and White – two Super Bowl LV participants and team captains that are in completely different situations. Their outlook is something that Bowles spoke on after the season concluded.

Todd Bowles “Would Love” Lavonte David Back

For the Bucs, the bigger priority of the two is Lavonte David. From a production standpoint, David was as good as ever in 2023. The soon-to-be 34-year-old had one of the best seasons in his career, recording 134 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and 4.5 sacks while playing in 15 games. As left tackle Tristan Wirfs said earlier this season, “Lavonte is an animal” and they should get his gold jacket ready.

Bucs ILB Lavonte David and HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

In a lot of ways, David turned back the clock to be the Bucs’ most impactful defender not named Antoine Winfield Jr. But it isn’t just the statistics and big plays that tell the story of what he means to Tampa Bay. On a team littered with puppies, Lavonte David remains the big dog.

He is the veteran, the longtime franchise staple, and the fan favorite who has been with the team every step of the way. Getting him back for another year would mean a lot for keeping the continuity and leadership of the defense afloat.

Todd Bowles has been in the league a long time and coached a lot of players, but he admitted in his press conference that David is one of his favorites.

“Would love to have him back,” Bowles said on the team bringing David back. “He’s one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached. I don’t even look at his age – he plays timeless, he plays timeless football. He plays it the right way, he prepares the right way, he’s the ultimate professional.”

With how much he means and still provides, it makes sense that the Bucs would love to keep him around for another year. They would have one sure-fire starter anchoring the defense, especially as it looks clear that the other will be cast away.

Is There Any Chance Of A Devin White Return?

When looking at the other inside linebacker position, obviously the hope this season was that Devin White would play well. Besides his play in 2020 and 2021, there was not a lot to support White getting a big deal in free agency – in Tampa Bay or elsewhere. If he returned to his old ways, he very much could have played his way into getting some kind of a contract extension with the Bucs.

But that looks unlikely after the year he had.

White started strong in Week 1 against the Vikings, a game where he was all over the field and recorded 12 tackles. But that would be the only double-digit tackle game he’d have on the season, and later in the year, he was replaced as the starter for K.J. Britt.

With the way Britt performed down the stretch – including notching a career-high 12 tackles of his own against the Lions – he has a strong argument to be the opposite starter with David if he’s brought back.

“It’s too early for that,” Bowles said when asked about Britt being a possible starter in 2024. “I think he played well, there’s definitely a place for him next year. We’ll probably get into that as we go into the spring, but we like him.”

Not to mention the organization also likes SirVocea Dennis, the 2023 fifth-round pick who filled in admirably when injuries arose. But there is understandably an immense amount of doubt on whether the team still likes White, its former 2018 first-round pick.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and ILB Devin White – Photo by: USA Today

Bowles has long been a supporter of Devin White and has been the coach who remained in his corner on and off the field. Asked about White’s play this season, Bowles said: “He’s probably up and down. Some injured, up and down like our season. We had some good days, we had some bad days. We had a lot of guys that played that way.”

It becomes a question of whether the Bucs want to give out a new contract to a player who is known for his inconsistency and has pronounced flaws. At the end of the day, it’s a business no matter how you feel about the player.

Bowles thinks highly of him, but it comes down to a decision of dollars and cents, and it does not appear to make much sense for the defensive captain to remain in Tampa Bay.

“I don’t know – he’s a free agent from a business standpoint,” Bowles said. “Love Devin to death, from a free-agent standpoint, I know it’s a business, and things have to be out there. We’ll work together and we’ll work some things out and hopefully, we can come up with something.”

The Bucs will be spending much of the next two months working out who remains in town and what additional pieces they will look to add to supplement the core of the roster. At inside linebacker, there are a couple of routes they can go. It all starts with if Lavonte David and/or Devin White re-sign, and who would fill their place should they move on in free agency.