The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have lost yesterday’s divisional rematch against the New Orleans Saints, but one of the big takeaways from the game was the continued growth of rookie linebacker Devin White.
The former LSU star, who was selected fifth overall in the 2019 NFL Draft, had a rough go of things to start the season. Leading up to Week 1’s opener, White struggled with tonsillitis and lost 10 pounds because of the illness. Then, in Week 2, he suffered a knee sprain that sidelined him for several weeks.
Now healthy, White has been showing off some of the crazy athleticism that had many people picking him as a preseason favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year.
In Week 8’s loss to the Tennessee Titans, White had a monster tackle on Titans punter Brett Kern during a trick play. White’s tackle knocked the ball out of Kern’s hand and was returned for a Bucs touchdown, but the refs inexplicably called Kern down by contact.
The Devin White hit on Titans Punter Brett Kern during the fake punt. Ball is clearly out before Kern touches down. Buccaneers returned it for the score BUT the play got whistled down. Rough. #TBvsTEN #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/aL95BLfZ8h
— René Bugner (@RNBWCV) October 27, 2019
The following week in Seattle, White prevented a touchdown run by Seahawks running back Chris Carson, sprinting down field like a bat out of hell to catch him.
#Bucs LB Devin White said they clocked him at 21.80 MPH when he ran down Chris Carson on that 59-yard runpic.twitter.com/3jgCxr87df
— Trevor Sikkema (@TampaBayTre) November 7, 2019
And then, in yesterday’s loss to the Saints, White set a new career-high with 13 tackles, 11 of which were solo. He also had some highlight-worthy moments, like the one below.
#LSU’s Devin White…🧐 pic.twitter.com/MZcaO9yhYr
— Josh Lemoine (@LsuFBallTruth) November 17, 2019
While the team may be just 3-7, seeing White’s emergence into a star linebacker bodes well for this defense’s future.
Shades of Derrick Brooks, perhaps?
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