Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Devin White remains only unsigned draft pick

First round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers remains the only draft pick on the team who has yet to put pen-to-paper on his rookie contract.

Third round pick cornerback Jamel Dean signed his rookie contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers yesterday. This leaves fifth overall pick linebacker Devin White as the only unsigned draft pick left for the Buccaneers.

The Buccaneers have had the money in order to sign White even before superstar wide receiver Mike Evans restructured his deal. Since rookie deals are stipend under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, the holdup is not over money, but more than likely “offset languages” in the contract that could prohibit the player from getting all of his guaranteed money.

A perfect example of this language is Jacksonville Jaguars’ running back Leonard Fournette who had his guarantees voided due to sideline antics in the last week of the 2018 season. The language in Fournette’s contract allowed for the Jaguars to loophole their way out of some of the money that he was owed.

Three years ago, the Los Angeles (then San Diego) Chargers and their first round pick Joey Bosa had a contract dispute that lasted long into training camp over the language in his contract as well. It would not be a surprise if the standoff between White and the Buccaneers is over the same language at this point in the summer.

White’s contract has not kept him from participating with the team as he was at rookie mini-camp and at mandatory mini-camp. It will be interesting to see if White continues to participate without a signed deal if the dispute lasts that long, or if he will sit out of camp.

The Buccaneers have built so much momentum this offseason that it would be a hassle and a bummer for White’s contract to slow that down. Ideally the final domino will fall soon and White will be signed and ready for training camp later this month.