Longtime Buccaneers Super Bowl Champion Re-Signs With Team

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have re-signed longtime star linebacker Lavonte David for a 14th season.

Lavonte David (54) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers celebrates after recovering a ball during the second quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on Dec. 8, 2024. Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will keep linebacker Lavonte David, 35, around for a 14th season as he agreed to a one-year $10 million deal on Friday.

David’s agent Ron Butler told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and celebrated the news on social media. The fifth-longest tenured player in the league with the same team, David has helped the Buccaneers go from cellar dwellers to playoff contenders in his career.

“I love the game … (too) much to give it up just yet,” David wrote on Instagram on Friday to announce his decision to return. “Good Lord blessing me with another opportunity, so I figured I should take advantage of it! Tampa I’m not done yet! See you soon!”

David has 39 sacks, 1,602 tackles, 31 forced fumbles, 70 pass deflections, 13 interceptions, and 73 quarterback hits in his career. He helped the Buccaneers win a Super Bowl in the 2020 season after the team went 12 seasons without a playoff appearance.

Losing was the reality for David’s first nine seasons with the team. But he stuck around and helped the Buccaneers turn things around when former quarterback Tom Brady arrived in 2020.

Tampa Bay hasn’t missed the playoffs since, and the Buccaneers have won four-straight NFC South Division titles. That includes the past two with quarterback Baker Mayfield under center and a third with Todd Bowles as the head coach.

The Buccaneers made the Divisional Round in the 2023 season but fell short at home in the Wild Card Game in the 2024 season. David will look to help the Buccaneers get back to the playoffs again and make another run.

Likewise, he will look to help the defense stay solid after the unit finished 16th in the league for points allowed at 22.6 points per game. A veteran anchor for the defense, David has been part of Buccaneers defensive units that have finished in the top 15 of the league annually since 2020.

The former Pro Bowler and All-Pro has previously expressed hope to finish out his career with the Buccaneers. He said as much during an WDAE interview in February 2023.

“For sure. I’d love to retire as a Buccaneer,” David said during the WDAE interview. “Getting to play in the same building my whole career like guys like Ronde Barber and Derrick Brooks, that’d be amazing. Just to walk the same hallways they walked their whole career. Especially Derrick Brooks, you all know how I feel about Derrick.”

Barber and Brooks brought the first Super Bowl championship to Tampa Bay in the 2002 season, and they became Hall of Fame players in the process. Brooks, a former linebacker, joined the Hall of Fame in 2014, and Barber, a former cornerback, joined the hall in 2023. Both are still involved in the Buccaneers organization.

“Every time he comes around, my eyes light up,” David said regarding Brooks. “So, he’s definitely a guy who I kind of want to model after, just be a guy who played with Tampa their whole career and was just a staple for what they do.”

David could make his case for the Hall of Fame one day, and more achievements, accolades, and championships will only help. In addition to being one of the game’s top defensive players over the past 13 years, it’s worth noting he’s been one of the most durable players around. He has eight seasons with no games missed, and David has never played fewer than 12 games in a season, and that happened only once.

“Lavonte is not only one of the greatest Buccaneers in history, but is the embodiment of consistency, excellence, and leadership.” Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht said in a statement. “For over a decade, he has been the heart of our defense, setting the standard with his relentless work ethic and passion for the game. His impact on and off the field is immeasurable, and we are thrilled to have him back for another season.”

The Buccaneers drafted David, a Miami native, out of Nebraska with a second-round pick in 2012.