It’s been a difficult offseason for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in terms of franchise legends, as the organization lost two of its pillars in wide receiver Mike Evans and linebacker Lavonte David. Their departures mark the end of a defining chapter for the franchise’s core identity.
Evans will continue his career elsewhere, as he signed a three-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers and heads to the other Bay in pursuit of another Super Bowl before closing out his career. David decided to hang up his cleats after a standout 14-year career, officially retiring from the game.
Arians Thinks David Is Harder To Replace Than Evans
Both Evans and David’s leaving creates a significant void, and their absence will be felt in different ways. However, former Bruce Arians, who coached both during his time with the Buccaneers, recently weighed in on which departure may ultimately impact the team more during a podcast appearance.
Arians thinks the Buccaneers will feel the loss of David more than the Evan’s departure to San Francisco. Arians emphasized that strengthening the defense should be the organization’s top priority heading into 2026.
“Lavonte will be the harder one to replace,” Arians said via JoeBucsFan.com. “But I think Todd is going to do a great job of revamping the defense. We gave up too many leads last year, and we’ve got to do a better job of that.”
It’s a compelling argument, and one that holds up under closer examination. While Evans leaves behind a receiver room with multiple capable options ready to step into expanded roles, the departure of David presents a more complicated challenge. Even with the offseason addition of Alex Anzalone, the off-ball linebacker position remains difficult to fully replicate given David’s deep familiarity with Todd Bowles’ system.
But…
Both Evans and David will be missed in Tampa Bay, though it somehow still feels like a debate we’re pretending is open.
Replacing Evans is one thing on paper, but replacing David—the defensive quarterback, communicator, and on-field problem solver—is another entirely.
So while we can wait and see how things unfold this fall for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it’s probably not a bold prediction to suggest the answer is already leaning in one very obvious direction.
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