Many Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans had already come to grips with the fact that the 2025 NFL season was likely legendary linebacker Lavonte David's last in the league, and after he officially retired at a press conference, Bucs fans are now in heated debates about his Hall of Fame candidacy and will push for him to join Derrick Brooks in Canton.
In the more immediate term, reflecting on David's career has revealed just how underrated he was by the mainstream outside of Tampa with just one Pro Bowl selection to his name despite being on a First Team All Pro side and getting two Second Team All Pro selections in his career. And even then, you can argue he should have been on the All Pro teams more than just three times in 14 seasons.
Looking further back at when he first entered the league, it is wild to think that the 2012 NFL Draft class was as loaded as it was at the inside linebacker position. We are talking about an all time great crop led by Luke Kuechly, Bobby Wagner, and Lavonte David.
Lavonte David vs. Bobby Wagner is tough
David ranks no worse than third among this group, which also includes former New England Patriots Super Bowl winner and tactical weapon Dont'a Hightower, as well as a host of other decent players like Vontaze Burfict.
Distinguishing among the top three of Wagner, Kuechly, and David becomes a lot more difficult, and fans will be debating this one for ages to come. Even though Wagner and David both clearly have Kuechly beat on longevity since the former Carolina Panthers star only lasted seven seasons in the league, he also left early by choice and had by far the best peak of the three.
Kuchely was a Defensive Player of the Year and was so smart at the linebacker position that he was like a quarterback. He was even named to the All Decades Team. Peak and the length of a player's peak matter more than longevity since it is more impressive and difficult to be the best in the league for a handful of seasons, and Kuechly truly was. Putting all feelings about the Panthers aside, Kuechly is on a different level than both Wagner and David.
Choosing between David and Wagner is a lot more difficult, though. Both players were well rounded linebackers, and Wagner may have better numbers since he was able to focus more on stopping the run in the loaded Seattle Seahawks pass defense. David had some good players around him and was part of a Super Bowl winning team, too, but he wasn't part of a defensive dynasty.
Both men were leaders and were good at covering, but it's just that David was even better at covering and had to take on an even bigger leadership role with no players like Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, or Earl Thomas around him. David had Gerald McCoy and Vita Vea, but Wagner also had some great linebackers and defensive linemen to help him, too (like KJ Wright, Brandon Mebane, and Michael Bennett).
Wagner's streak of five straight First Team All Pro selections and notch of three times leading the league in tackles is hard to ignore, though. And Wagner is still playing and one of the best linebackers in the NFL. He probably just barely edges out David and keeps him in third, but the fact that it is such a close debate speaks to David's Hall of Fame candidacy.