When pressed by some of his peers during a recent podcast, Lavonte David said he was “confident” the Bucs would repeat as Super Bowl champs next season.
If that prophecy comes to fruition, it still may rank as the second-most audacious of this current Bucs corps.
Appearing on the I Am Athlete podcast, David told NFL alumni Brandon Marshall, Ryan Clark, Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor that Tom Brady predicted the 2020 Bucs wouldn’t lose again after their Week 12 home loss to the Chiefs.
“I tell you no lie,” said David, who recently signed a two-year, $25 million contract to remain in Tampa Bay. “Everybody knows Tom, Tom came and said, ‘I’m glad we got this out of the way. Look, trust me on this, we’re fixing to get this right. You guys are going to keep playing good, and we’re not going to lose another game.’”
The Bucs, of course, went 8-0 from there, embarrassing the Chiefs, 31-9 in the Super Bowl rematch at Raymond James Stadium. David indicated the season changed course in the second half of the Week 12 defeat, an observation coach Bruce Arians also has made.
“The second half we came out, I don’t think they probably scored 10 points in the second half (they actually scored only seven),” David said. “And we had an opportunity to win the game, but things didn’t go our way. We get there to the Super Bowl, we’re like, ‘Okay.’ You could tell the whole swag was different.”
Pressured at the end of the podcast to predict a Super Bowl repeat, the ninth-year inside linebacker obliged.
“It’s a yes or no question,” Clark said. “Will you run it back, coach?”
“I’m confident enough we’ll be back,” David said.
