The Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose their 2020 team captains through a player vote on Tuesday, and the results are a mix of newcomers and long-tenured Buccaneers, as well as some of the youngest and oldest players on the team.
The Buccaneers' 2020 captains are quarterback Tom Brady and wide receiver Mike Evans on offense; linebackers Lavonte David and Devin White on defense; and punter Bradley Pinion and linebacker Kevin Minter on special teams.
Though Brady is in his first year with the Buccaneers it is no surprise that he was singled out as a team leader. The 21-year veteran is one of the most respected players in NFL history and his expected effect on the locker room was touted as much as his quarterbacking ability when he was signed in March. At 43, Brady is the oldest player on the team, though he still plays like a man much younger.
Evans' selection was unsurprising as well, as he will serve as a team captain for a fourth straight season. His leadership throughout his six-year Buccaneers tenure has been as steady as his production; Evans and Randy Moss are the only players in NFL history to start their careers with six straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
View photos of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 53-man roster.
S Andrew Adams
OLB Shaquil Barrett
RB Le'Veon Bell
RB Giovani Bernard
QB Tom Brady
TE Cameron Brate
OLB K.J. Britt
G Alex Cappa
CB Ross Cockrell
WR Jaelon Darden
ILB Lavonte David
CB Carlton Davis III
CB Jamel Dean
CB Dee Delaney
CB Pierre Desir
S Mike Edwards
WR Mike Evans
RB Leonard Fournette
QB Blaine Gabbert
DL William Gholston
OLB Cam Gill
WR Cyril Grayson Jr.
TE Rob Gronkowski
OL Robert Hainsey
TE O.J. Howard
C Ryan Jensen
WR Tyler Johnson
RB Ronald Jones II
G Nick Leverett
G Ali Marpet
DT Steve McLendon
WR Scotty Miller
ILB Kevin Minter
CB Sean Murphy-Bunting
OLB Anthony Nelson
DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches
WR Breshad Perriman
OLB Jason Pierre-Paul
P Bradley Pinion
CB Rashard Robinson
OT Donovan Smith
G Aaron Stinnie
ILB Grant Stuard
K Ryan Succop
DL Ndamukong Suh
QB Kyle Trask
LS Zach Triner
OLB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka
RB Ke'Shawn Vaughn
DT Vita Vea
WR Justin Watson
OT Josh Wells
ILB Devin White
S Jordan Whitehead
S Antoine Winfield Jr.
T Tristan Wirfs
David is the longest-tenured player on the Bucs' roster, having joined the team as a second-round draft pick in 2012, and he is also its longest-running captain. This is the seventh straight season that David's teammates have chosen him to have a "C" on his jersey, and as he points out, that means a lot of different players have seen him as one of the team's main leaders.
"It's real big, man, it's really special to be voted captain seven years straight," said David. "And then to be voted by different guys every year, that just shows that I have the respect from my peers and I'm doing what I'm supposed to do, leading them the way I'm supposed to lead them and playing the way I'm supposed to play. I really thank those guys for voting me as a captain, and every time I put that 'C' on my chest I wear it with honor, I wear it with pride."
Though he is entering his second NFL season, the 22-year-old White is still the third-youngest player on the Bucs' roster. Despite his youth, he has rapidly emerged as a very vocal leader on the field and in the locker room. He is a Buccaneers captain for the first time but David isn't surprised that his running mate in the middle of the defense was chosen so early in his career.
"You've seen it coming already," said David of the fifth-overall pick in the 2019 draft. "As soon as he walked in the building, you knew he was going to be one of those guys that people could follow. And it's showing. He's one of those guys who always has a motor. He's constantly talking and trying to get better, constantly doing things to get better and constantly doing things to try to help this team. Him being voted captain shows that he was one of those guys, once he walked in the building he had that aura about him that he could be one of the leaders on this football team, and today we made that official."
Both Pinion and Minter are in their second seasons with the Buccaneers and have been chosen as team captains for the first time. This is also the first time that Tampa Bay has chosen two special teams captains. The NFL allows a maximum of six players to "Cs" on their jerseys; last year the Buccaneers gave three of those to offensive players.
