One of the bigger disappointments over the last few years for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was former first-round pick Devin White flaming out. He went from potential successor to Lavonte David's throne to being uncermoniously released when his contract ran out last offseason.
White bounced around between Philly and Houston but has seemingly found a home in Las Vegas. He signed with the Raiders in free agency and is already making the right impressions with a head coach who seems to be getting the most out of him once again.
Raiders head coach Pete Carroll praised White at a recent press conference, something that the former Buccaneers starter has apparently backed up on the practice field.
Pete Carroll speaking on Devin White: He's Back!#RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/pVuelaCknN
— Phil Jones (@PhilJonesNFL) July 29, 2025
By all accounts, the old Devin White is resurfacing in Vegas. Beat reporters have noted that White is "flying around the field" while also noting that he's "healthy and in a great place mentally and physically", which is honestly really great to hear.
White's crash out in Tampa was made even more difficult given how much hope there was about his future. He wasn't that far removed from being a key part of a Super Bowl winning defense and appeared to be a successor to Lavonte David as the leader on that side of the ball.
All of that vanished when we requested a trade amid contract negotiations and followed it by underperforming to such a degree that he was benched midseason. It was a sudden fall from grace, and the Buccaneers were completely justified letting him go when they did.
Hearing that the guy Bucs fans thought they were getting has rediscovered what made him special is something worth rooting for.
It would have been nice if White had done that while he was still in Tampa, as it would have helped the team's challenging linebacker situation, but that's all in the past. White was an exciting player on defense and if he's truly back like Carroll said, the rest of the AFC West has a massive problem to deal with.
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