Tag: Lavonte David

5 options for the Bucs if Lavonte David leaves in free agency

If the Bucs can’t bring back Lavonte David, here are some replacement options they could target

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may soon face a scenario they have not had to face in over a decade: Life without Lavonte David.

The long-time Bucs linebacker is expected to test free agency this offseason, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. While the Bucs would like to have him back, they have more money counting against the cap than any team in the league.

Replacing David would be a tall order. Even at 33, he is still one of the best linebackers in the game. His instincts are as good as any linebackers in the NFL, and he is the rare linebacker with legit coverage skills.

Seeing as David is arguably the best linebacker entering free agency, the Bucs are not likely to find an upgrade there. The draft at least gives the Bucs to get younger at the position.

Here are five options the Bucs should consider if David leaves in free agency:

The NFL’s top 151 upcoming free agents, Nos. 1-75

The NFL’s new league year is just around the corner, so Doug Farrar put together his list of the top 151 free agents. Here’s 1-75, from Javon Hargrave to Linval Joseph.

Before Derek Carr moved to New Orleans, Geno Smith stayed in Seattle, Daniel Jones got a big new deal, and Lamar Jackson led a list of franchise-tagged players that also included Commanders defensive lineman Daron Payne, Cowboys running back Tony Pollard, Giants running back Saquon Barkley, Raiders running back Josh Jacobs, and Jaguars tight end Evan Engram, the upcoming 2023 class of free agents was packed with marquee names.

Now that those names are off the board, this class is less exceptional in a headline sense — but it doesn’t mean that there aren’t still all kinds of players that could positively alter the course of any team. This class is now wider than it is tall, but it’s very wide. Which is to say, there is impressive talent soon to be available when the new league year begins at 4:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday March 15. And a lot of that talent will be more available to the teams that have really done their homework.

With that in mind, we have done our homework here at Touchdown Wire. This list of the top 151 players who will be free agents when the new league year starts is based on comprehensive tape study, and scouring all kinds of metrics to make sure everything matches up as much as possible in the inexact science of player evaluation. The guys up top are (or should be) still marquee names, though most of them are not offensive skill players.

As you go down the list, you’ll see players who may have tried their best in the wrong systems, players who may have failed to live up to their potential at this time, players who are just getting the hang of things, and players who might just need the right circumstance and opportunity.

Here, without further ado, is our list of the top 151 free agents for the 2023 league year, starting with Nos. 1-75.

2023 NFL free agency: Ranking 9 linebacker options for Seahawks

The 2023 NFL draft is probably the best place to find Wagner’s long-term successor, but there are also some free agents worth looking at.

The Seahawks had a great linebacker. Then they decided to let him go, without so much as an offer of a pay-cut. Their loss was the Rams’ gain – and Bobby Wagner immediately recaptured his peak form and once again became the league’s best off-ball linebacker. Now, Seattle has to find a way to replace him because their own two starters couldn’t even crack the top 100 PFF grades at their position.

The 2023 NFL draft is probably the best place to find Wagner’s long-term successor, but there are also some free agents worth looking at. Here are eight nine the Seahawks could consider.

Update:

The Rams have released Bobby Wagner, just one year into the five-year deal he signed last March. Obviously that radically changes the linebacker market as well as the order of our list.

Lavonte David wants to retire with the Bucs

Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David wants to finish his career where it started

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded up in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft for an undersized linebacker out of Nebraska, they landed a franchise cornerstone who would become the latest in a longstanding team tradition of dominant players at the position.

More than a decade later, Lavonte David is set to become an unrestricted free agent next month, which could bring an end to his incredible run in a Bucs uniform.

David knows the NFL is a business, but he’s already making it clear that he wants to finish his career in Tampa Bay.

“I’d love to retire as a Buccaneer,” David recently told WDAE (via Pewter Report). “Getting to play in the same building my whole career like guys like Ronde Barber and Derrick Brooks, that’d be amazing. Just to walk the same hallways they walked their whole career. Especially Derrick Brooks, you all know how I feel about Derrick. Every time he comes around, my eyes light up. So, he’s definitely a guy who I kind of want to model after, just be a guy who played with Tampa their whole career and was just a staple for what they do.”

David is destined for the Bucs’ Ring of Honor, regardless of whether or not he plays elsewhere in the twilight of his career. He’s still playing at a high level, and the Bucs would have a gaping hole in the middle of their defense if they’re not able to re-sign him.

It’ll take some creative salary cap work, and maybe a little bit of a hometown discount, but don’t be surprised if No. 54 is suiting up in the only NFL jersey he’s ever known again this fall.

Zulgad’s four-and-out: An early look at some of the Vikings’ potential free agent targets

From @jzulgad: Free agency might be six weeks away, but it’s never too early to start having conversations about who the Vikings should sign

The NFL season has yet to come to a conclusion, but that hasn’t stopped football’s version of the Hot Stove from heating up with speculation about what teams might do and where free agents could be headed.

The process doesn’t officially start until March 15, so much of the talk is focused on Senior Bowl practices and the prospects for the April 27-29 draft in Kansas City. Free agency scuttlebutt will take off later this month when the NFL Combine is held in Indianapolis.

That’s where team executives and agents have been known to have conversations involving players who are still under contract. Some call that tampering, but we here at Vikings Wire refer to it as good old-fashioned fun.

We also figure why wait until the combine to begin speculating on whom the Vikings might target. The Vikings are expected to part ways with a few veterans to open cap space, so who might replace them?

Pro Football Focus and ESPN (subscription) both published their lists of the top 50 free agents. Some of these players could have the franchise tag put on them or return to their current team, but many will sign elsewhere.

Here’s a look at whom the Vikings could target, focusing on the positions at which they could use help.

Lavonte David headed for free agency, but wants to finish career with Bucs

After spending his entire 11-year NFL career in Tampa Bay, Lavonte David would prefer to finish where he started

For more than a decade, there are few positive things Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans could count on.

Lavonte David has always been one of them.

The latest in a long line of legendary linebackers to play for the Bucs, David is now set to hit free agency after spending all 11 seasons of his NFL career so far in Tampa Bay.

David’s elite play was buried for years by playing on some terrible Bucs teams, but Tom Brady’s arrival and three straight trips to the postseason have finally exposed the national audience to one of the NFL’s most underrated players.

After Monday night’s wild-card loss to the Dallas Cowboys ended Tampa Bay’s season, David reflected on his past, and acknowledged his uncertain future:

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Cowboys 31, Bucs 14: Postgame reaction from Tom Brady, Todd Bowles and more

Hear from Tom Brady, Todd Bowles, and other members of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after their season-ending playoff loss

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 2022 season ended with a crushing loss, a 31-14 defeat in Monday night’s wild-card playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.

After the game, quarterback Tom Brady, head coach Todd Bowles, and other members of the team spoke with the media to share their reactions to the disappointing defeat:

NFL Free Agency: 23 potential targets for the Seahawks in 2023

Here are 23 players who might be of interest to the Seahawks if they hit the open market on March 15.

The Seahawks’ 2022 season is over. The first order of business will be re-signing or extending the most-important players on their own roster. After that, they’ll move on to signing free agents. While they have not historically been big movers in free agency, there are some names that could help next season.

Here are 23 players who might be of interest to the Seahawks if they hit the open market on March 15.

Bucs talk playoff mentality heading into wild-card game vs. Cowboys

After struggling through adversity in the regular season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are focused on making the most of their postseason trip

Whatever happened in the regular season, it’s clear the Tampa Bay Buccaneers aren’t wasting any energy worrying about the past.

Instead, they’re solely focused on the task at hand, as they prepare for Monday night’s wild-card playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.

After Wednesday’s walk-through, various members of the team met with the media to discuss their preparations heading into Monday night’s postseason matchup:

WATCH: Bucs LB Lavonte David strip-sacks Bengals QB Joe Burrow

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are getting tons of big plays early from their defense Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals

The big plays just keep coming for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

After an interception and a huge third-down sack to end the Cincinnati Bengals’ first two offensive possessions, their third one began with a huge strip-sack from Bucs linebacker Lavonte David.

Burrow recovered his own fumble thanks to a fortuitous bounce, but the Bengals weren’t able to gain the yardage back, and were forced to punt the ball away.

The Bucs are up 10-0 early in the second quarter, and now have the ball back with a chance to extend their lead.

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