The Tampa Bay Buccaneers re-signed all of their big free agents this offseason, but they also brought back another familiar face who spent the past two seasons elsewhere.
Safety Jordan Whitehead signed a two-year deal with the Bucs after playing for the New York Jets over the past two campaigns, returning to the team that drafted him in the fourth round out of Pitt back in 2018.
Now that Whitehead is back in the defense that he helped win a Super Bowl back in 2020, his no-longer-former teammates are thrilled, including linebacker Lavonte David.
“Man, that might be the biggest one back,” David said earlier this week. “Whitehead was a guy who, obviously, I built a personal relationship with. Just having him behind me on the field gave me a whole bunch of confidence, knowing that I could count on Whitehead to do his job. For whatever happened, he didn’t have a chance to come back, but still he was communicating with us about how much he missed us and stuff like that … He wanted to come back here – that was his first priority, so I’m glad [they] were able to get that done.
David said Whitehead’s value to the team goes far beyond the field, too.
“Whitehead, he is a special guy, not only on the football field, but as a person,” David said. “For me, I’m all about energy and seeing the good in people and stuff like that. I’ve kind of got a sixth sense for that and Whitehead is one of those guys that is a joy to be around as a man and as a teammate. He just brings that type of passion to the game that you love. When you are playing with a guy like Whitehead, you can just look him in the eyes and know that he is ready to play, so you don’t even need to worry about him. Off the field, the way he carries himself and goes about things – he’s a pro’s pro and [those are] the [type] of guys we’ve got to have in this locker room.”
Tampa Bay had a huge need at the other safety spot opposite All-Pro Antoine Winfield Jr., and Whitehead is the perfect fit, just as he was the last time he wore a Bucs uniform.
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