Getty The Buccaneers head into the NFL season with a quarterback competition.
The Seattle Seahawks are projected to have more than $47 million in cap space this offseason which puts Pete Carroll, John Schneider and company among the top-five teams with the most money to spend in 2023, per Spotrac. Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox labels Buccaneers star linebacker Lavonte David as a player that should be atop the Seahawks “wish list.”
“While David wasn’t spectacular in coverage, he did allow a respectable OPR of 90.9—down from 106.5 in 2021,” Knox wrote on January 13, 2023. “With a projected market value of $9.7 million annually, David should be a target for any linebacker-needy team not looking to break the bank.
“He should be near the top of the wish list for Seattle. The Seahawks struggled against the run in 2022, finishing with the third-most rushing yards allowed. With $47.5 million in projected cap space, Seattle could easily justify spending on David to help address its biggest defensive liability.”
By comparison, the Buccaneers are projected to be more than $43 million over the cap heading into the offseason. The Bucs are going to need to make some difficult decisions which could include passing on re-signing David to a new deal.
David Signed a 2-year, $25 Million Contract With Bucs in 2021
David has consistently been one of the top NFL linebackers playing a key role on the Bucs’ Super Bowl run during the 2020 season. The former Pro Bowler notched 124 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, three sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery playing in all 17 games this season for Tampa Bay.
David has posted more than 100 tackles in nine of his 11 NFL seasons. The veteran earned an 84.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus in 2022, including a remarkable 88.5 score for his coverage play.
It was David and the Buccaneers defense that made Tampa Bay an appealing destination when Tom Brady bolted New England for sunny Florida in 2020. Following the Super Bowl, Tampa Bay signed David to a two-year, $25 million contract, but the linebacker will once again be a free agent this offseason.
“I’m positive, I’m 100% positive he [Brady] knew he had a great football team,” David told Heavy Sports during an exclusive June 4, 2021 interview. “That he would just come in and try to get us where we needed to go. Defensively, we were set, and offensively we had all the weapons that he needs. So, why not come and join?”
The Seahawks Could Be Without Brooks & Irvin When 2023 Season Kicks Off
54 days until the season starts. Here’s some Lavonte David career highlights. You can’t fit his career highlights in 2 minutes but here’s a few of them. #GoBucs
The Seahawks may have a sizable amount of cap space at their disposal, but Seattle has not typically been aggressive free-agent spenders during the Carroll-Schneider era. We will see if this changes as the Seahawks head into their second season of the post-Russell Wilson era.
Seattle needs to address the linebacker position in the coming months with the team likely to be without multiple starters in 2023. Spotrac projects David’s market value being a one-year, $9.7 million contract, but it would not be a surprise if the star defender lands a more lucrative deal given his stellar play this season.
At the end of the regular season, Bruce Irvin hinted that he may retire for good this offseason. The Seahawks have not revealed a specific return timeline for Jordyn Brooks, but the team is in danger of the defender missing the start of the 2023 season as he continues to recover from an ACL injury.
“He has an ACL injury and it’s legit,” Carroll explained to Seattle Sports’ “Brock and Salk” during a January 2 interview. “He had an unfortunate kind of landing on the sidelines over there.
“Just kind of as he was spinning, he just got his knee torqued. Didn’t get hit on it, (but) as he was kind of rotating around the tackle he landed awkwardly and unfortunately got hurt. That’s a shame. What a great, great player and a great teammate.”