Devin White explains why he signed with the Detroit Lions
· Yahoo Sports
Devin White has pretty much always seen success wherever he’s gone. LSU posted a 27-11 record during his time in college. He won a Super Bowl in the second year of his NFL career. And he’s made the playoffs in five of his seven season in the pros.
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But last year with the Las Vegas Raiders was different. As a 17-game starter, White watched the Raiders quickly fall out of contention. The team fell apart and finished a 3-14.
“Coming off last year, losing season, that was like the first time ever (for me),” White said. “I ain’t never lost or having a losing season in my career since I was a kid, so that was very hard.”
[Editor’s note: He did go through a 7-9 and 8-9 season with the Buccaneers.]
This offseason, he made sure that wasn’t going to happen again. He had some offers that came in early in free agency. After all, we’re talking about former fifth overall pick, a Pro Bowler, and a player who finished last season with 17 starts and finished third in the NFL in tackles. But White wasn’t interested in going to the highest bigger or the most eager team. He was going to be selective and patient with his process.
“I feel like just jumping out there head first and putting myself back in the position I was in last year–a lot of other teams, they’re probably a lot of pieces away from getting to even the postseason, and I really didn’t want to deal with that,” White siad. “I want to go in and be able to help a team that really wants to win right now.”
White said he had contact with the Lions early in the free agent process, but put plans on the shelf. Then on Friday, Lions linebacker Jimmy Rolder suffered an injury that’s expected to keep him out a while. Detroit had White on a flight to Detroit that night.
White was immediately drawn to Detroit’s ability to compete for a title, but when he arrived, he only got more impressed. The culture lived up to its reputation, particularly because of all the coaches around who played in this league before.
“I think this was the right fit for me being around some ball-coaches who actually played the game, can actually get out there, hands on with you, and let’s keep improving,” White said. “Let’s keep improving whatever they think I can improve in, they can actually get out there and coach me, coach me, because they did it before. So they know exactly what they’re looking for.”
It may take some time for White to acclimate and climb the depth chart. While he spent the offseason making sure he was physically and mentally ready to jump back in at a moment’s notice, he now has a new playbook to learn. And while the coverages are all familiar, the terminology is not.
Still, White is proud of the work he put in during Sunday’s practice—his first with Detroit—and he’s ready to take things to a new level when the pads come on Monday.
“I just finished Day 1 of practice, and it was a good one,” White said. “I gotta go back and get back into film study so I can come back tomorrow with the pads on and be a lot faster and a lot more physical. So I’ll be trying to get acclimated to that.”