Lavonte David praises Buccaneers' culture: 'I wouldn't want to be anywhere else'

With Jason Licht as their General Manager, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have done a tremendous job of identifying and selecting players of value in the draft, developing those players over time and ultimately retaining them. It's been a crucial part of Licht's roster-building process, and his success in executing it has allowed the Buccaneers to extend their competitive window without having to truly 'rebuild' after the Tom Brady years or break the bank for external free agents.

Franchise cornerstones including Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Lavonte David, Vita Vea, Tristan Wirfs, Antoine Winfield Jr. and Jamel Dean were all drafted by the Bucs, and each of them made the decision to re-sign with Tampa Bay — several of them on multiple occasions — despite significant interest from practically every other team in the league.

Not only does this fact speak to the loyalty and character of the human beings the Buccaneers have drafted over the years, but it also speaks to the culture that those players have helped establish in Tampa Bay.

Fresh off signing a new 1-year, $9 million contract to remain with the Buccaneers for what will be his 14th season, legendary linebacker Lavonte David joined Bucky Brooks and Mike Yam on the NFL Network to discuss his decision.

Among other things, David talked about why he believes the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' culture is special.

"Everybody is a tight knit group, everybody is cool man, always smiles and stuff like that when you walk in the building. Everybody’s got the same goal man, we’re just trying to go out there and compete to win football games. Everybody’s got that underdog mentality and I think that’s why everybody loves each other."

When asked about the uniqueness of negotiating with a team that you are so familiar with, David offered the following response.

"At the end of the day man, you know Jason, Mike Greenberg and all those guys, reached out to me, they let me know that they want me back," David said. "Whenever I’m ready, they tell me when I’m all ready, there’s a contract there for me to sign. That’s just the type of relationship we have and that’s why I have a lot of respect for those guys."

David also cited loyalty and the way he has been treated by the organization over the years as a key reason why he, just like so many other star players, have opted to remain in Tampa Bay despite having other, sometimes more lucrative, offers to play elsewhere.

"I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else, anyways. Just because, you know, what I’ve built in the city of Tampa and what I’ve built through that organization," David said. "And how they treat me, so they deserve my loyalty back. They’ve been loyal to me. So it’s a great deal of respect, great transparency between both sides.”

Whether you believe the positive (and winning) culture that has been established within the Tampa Bay Buccaneers organization is because of the players, the coaches, the front office, or even ownership, doesn't really matter. Why? Because in reality, it's all of the above.

Just like all the great players who have chosen to remain in Tampa Bay in recent years, and feel extremely privileged to be there, the entire Buccaneers organization and its fans are grateful to have them.