Every coach would love to have a player like Lavonte David on their team. As the Tampa Bay Buccaneers began their 2025 training camp on Wednesday, head coach Todd Bowles took a moment to express his appreciation for the 14-year veteran's leadership.
The Buccaneers drafted David in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft. Over 13 seasons, David has amassed 1,111 solo tackles, 490 assisted tackles, 39 sacks, 13 interceptions and 19 fumble recoveries.
"He's meant everything to me," Bowles said. "He's the second coach on the field. He gets everybody lined up, he talks to everybody, inspires everybody, corrects everybody, he understands situations, he can call out plays when he's out there, and he makes plays all the time. That's been a godsend for us. He's been one of the consistent ones over there. There's a reason he's played that long."
As the leader of the Buccaneers defense, David sets the tone, and with him leading, the group knows it must perform better next season. In 2024, the Buccaneers finished 15th in total defense.
David has set high expectations for the upcoming season and has expressed his commitment to lead the team, especially when players are exhausted.
"My favorite part about the grind is that third, fourth day of full-pad practices and everybody is tired, everybody's beat up, everybody's complaining and then to just come out like 'No, F that, I want to be the one to bring everybody on,'" David said.
"I want to see everybody pick themselves up, and I want to be the guy bringing everybody up when they are going through hard times in camp."
Lavonte David will aim to replicate the performance that led the team to win Super Bowl LV. He will ensure the players are mentally and physically prepared to achieve that goal again.