Tom Brady is gone, retiring from the Bucs and the league after a historic, 23-year career. Not only was he was Tampa Bay’s quarterback the last three years, he was also a team captain.

The Bucs are a month away from beginning the 2023 regular season and the team will need a new set of captains for the new year. A few of the team’s iconic players will be team captains again. Linebacker Lavonte David, who returns for his 12th season in Tampa Bay, is a given, as is wide receiver Mike Evans, who enters his 10th year with the Bucs. Both have been long-time captains.

But Brady’s departure creates an opening on offense.

With such a close quarterback race between newcomer Baker Mayfield and third-year quarterback Kyle Trask, do the Bucs dare give it to one quarterback over the other? Mayfield has shown a lot of leadership and has done well to integrate himself into the Bucs locker room so quickly this offseason. But what if Trask ultimately wins the starting job? Or if it’s close enough to where if Mayfield falters on the field Trask steps in the rest of season?

Alternate Choices For Bucs’ Offensive Captain

Bucs QB Tom Brady and RT Tristan Wirfs – Photo by: USA Today

If the Bucs opt not to select one of their two quarterbacks as a team captain this year, which is a possibility, there are a couple of proven leaders who the offense could select instead. The first of which is left tackle Tristan Wirfs. With two Pro Bowls and an All-Pro berth under his belt, Wirfs is arguably the most talented player on the Bucs roster. He’s been a rock-solid force at right tackle and is now moving to left tackle this season to replace Donovan Smith.

In an upcoming Tristan Wirfs Camp Diary, the Bucs’ 2020 first-rounder reveals that he would actually like to be a team captain this year, replacing Tom Brady in that role.

“I would absolutely love to be a team captain,” Wirfs said. “I was never a team captain in college. I’ve always wanted to be a team captain – that guy, especially in college – it’s always a legacy thing for the seniors. Here I’m trying to step up into more of a leadership role where guys can lean on me. If I have to get guys going I’ll get them going.

“These past three years I’ve shown up and did my job. But in conversations I’ve had, people have wanted me to step up more. So I’m ready to be here for whoever needs me in whatever role they need me to be. I want to help all these guys win ball games and be here for them.”

Another obvious choice on offense is wide receiver Chris Godwin. The seven-year veteran is the highest-paid player on offense, earning $20 million per season. His status within the team has also been elevated this offseason with his inclusion in the Bucs’ creamsicle uniform reveal video, as well as being one of four Bucs players featured on the murals at Raymond James Stadium, joining fellow receiver Mike Evans.

Will Devin White Remain A Captain On Defense?

Bucs DT Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

On the defensive side, inside linebacker Devin White has been a team captain since 2019, which was his second year in Tampa Bay. But after a holdout this offseason during a contract dispute, in addition to a trade request, will that negatively affect how his teammates view him, or will White’s teammates vote him to be a team captain again? White hopes the latter is the case.

“I want to be a captain again, that was one thing that was hard,” White said. “Sitting out was hard, and I wasn’t really sitting out because I still came in a building, because I want to be here. But at the end of the day, man, that’s over with. I’m on the field going hard, and I’m embraced by all the guys. I’m out there working and making them better and they [are] making me better.”

Nose tackle Vita Vea made his first Pro Bowl in 2021 and his elevated stature was rewarded the following year when the Bucs players voted him as a first-time team captain for the 2022 season. Will Vea get the nod again this season? He should after leading Tampa Bay with a career-high 6.5 sacks last year. Vea is also one of four Bucs players on the murals outside of Raymond James Stadium, along with linebacker Lavonte David and receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

Bucs ILB Devin White and FS Antoine Winfield, Jr. – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs had three defensive team captains last year with White, David and Vea. So if safety Antoine Winfield Jr. wants to crack the captain lineup, he’ll either have to receive more votes than Vea or White. To his credit, Winfield was one of four players the team chose to appear in the Bucs’ creamsicle uniform reveal video.

While not directly campaigning for a captain role, Winfield spoke about stepping up more as a leader this season as he enters a pivotal contract year.

“Yeah, a hundred percent,” Winfield said. “You know, the more years you get in this league, you kind of step into that role. So, my goal is, to you, know make everybody around be better and just encourage everybody and make sure I am bringing them up to the same level as I am.”

In the past, the Bucs have had a special teams captain or two, although that was not the case last season. Former punter Bradley Pinion and former linebacker Kevin Minter were team captains on special teams in 2021. If Tampa Bay decides to name special teams captains again, punter Jake Camarda, linebacker K.J. Britt and defensive lineman Pat O’Connor would be among the likely candidates to assume that role(s).