The Buccaneers knew replacing Lavonte David would not be easy.Two games into the season, it might already be worth asking whether they should give him a call. David retired this offseason after spending all 14 years of his career in Tampa Bay. The Bucs attempted to replace his presence by signing veteran Alex Anzalone to a two year, $17 million deal and drafting Josiah Trotter in the second round.
.Trotter has been one of Tampa Bay's biggest bright spots. He has 23 tackles, one sack and an interception returned for a touchdown through two games. His 76.2 PFF grade also ranks 10th among qualified linebackers. Anzalone has been a different story, as through two games, he has a 35.9 PFF grade, ranking 68th out of 69 qualified linebackers. His 34.6
coverage grade ranks 66th, while his 29.9 tackling grade would be the lowest of his career. That is especially concerning considering Tampa Bay signed Anzalone largely because he was expected to improve a linebacker group that struggled in coverage last season. Instead, opposing tight ends have continued finding success over the middle of the field. Behind Anzalone and Trotter, the options are not exactly convincing. SirVocea Dennis struggled in coverage last season, while Christian Rozeboom has primarily been a special teams player.
Should the Bucs try and convince David out of retirement? He is 36 years old and retired for a reason, so there is no guarantee he would even consider returning. His coverage numbers had also declined late in his career. But David still recorded 114 tackles, 3.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and eight tackles for loss during his final season. David spent seven seasons playing under Bowles, wore the captain badge for 12 consecutive years and finished his career with 1,716 tackles, 42.5 sacks, 14 interceptions and a franchise record 33 forced fumbles. David even had to have his knee drained every single week and still performed like he has for over a decade. But the Bucs are 0-2 and things only get tougher as the season goes on. Is he in football shape? Would be leave full time dad life for one more run? All variables that would make his decision somewhat harder to come to terms with. But it cant hurt to ask.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Should the Bucs call Lavonte David?
