As football has pivoted sharply toward health and safety in recent years, it can be jarring to see someone approach the game with the rough-and-tumble mindset that permeated the sport for decades.
Buccaneers linebacker Devin White embodies that rough-and-tumble mindset.
He’s physical, within the rules. He’s sudden, he strong, he’s violent, he’s athletically skilled.
“I think the number one thing is [defensive coordinator] Todd Bowles said, ‘We’re going to be feisty, we’re going to challenge those guys’ and he’s going to take us over them,” White told reporters after the 30-20 win over the Saints. “I said the same thing. I said, ‘Man, I’m going to take my guys over their guys.’ I know one thing -- we might be young, but we can get after it when we’ve got our minds set to it. Everybody’s saying it -- ‘Where’s the Tampa Bay defense from the Green Bay game?’ We were really feisty with them, we were really challenging them at the line of scrimmage and we were really getting after the quarterback. I think we had that same mentality [tonight].”
White was more blunt, and profane, in another quote that ended up not being included in his official transcript generated by the team: “Everyone was always asking what was our identity. We didn’t always have an answer. But coach [Bruce Arians] had an answer. We’re some motherf-ckers that are going to find a way to win the game.”
They found a way last night, at a time when it was looking bleak for the Bucs. With the Saints learning 20-13 and driving into Tampa Bay territory, Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. stripped the ball from New Orleans tight end Jared Cook and White scooped it up and took off. (It looked easy; how many times, however, have we seen defenders fail to make the recovery cleanly?)
White’s return set the stage for a game-tying touchdown. Then, after the Bucs took a 23-20 lead, White’s interception of Saints quarterback Drew Brees became the dagger, resulting in a short field and a quick drive for the last points of the game.
With four great teams left in the playoffs, it’s impossible to know with any certainty who will win the Super Bowl. But I can certainly say this: If White keeps playing like he did on Sunday, the Buccaneers will be the team hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.