For Lavonte David, the decision to return for a 15th season isn’t about money or loyalty; it’s about one man. And he just made it clear to the Buccaneers that without head coach Todd Bowles, there’s no conversation to be had. Following the team’s season finale against the Panthers, David gave a speech that felt like a farewell, but he has yet to officially decide whether he will retire or return for another year. At 36, the physical toll of the game is becoming a major factor in his decision-making.

On a recent episode of the Up & Adams podcast, David stated that if he returns for another season, it will only be with the Buccaneers.

“To be honest with you, I don’t think so,” David said when asked if he would be okay to move on to any other team. “It was Bucs or no one else. You know I played my 14-year career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and they’ve been real, they’ve been loyal to me, the fans were really loyal to me, and my family grew to love the city.” 

According to reports, David’s major reason to consider retirement is that he played the entire 2025 season with a painful knee injury. The situation was so severe that he had to have his knee drained of fluid every single week to stay on the field, at one point having as much as 50 cc removed just to keep moving. Such concerns are fueling retirement rumors

“I think Lavonte probably is going to retire,” Former Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said. “I never count him out. He goes back every year and sees how he’s feeling. The guy is amazing. He just stays in great shape.”

While the talk about David hanging up his cleats looms large, he may return for one final season. However, his performances have been far from encouraging. He’s slower than before and more prone to mistakes. The numbers across the board show that the linebacker is well past his prime.

He had fewer combined tackles (114), solo tackles (61), and tackles for loss (8) in 2025 compared to the last three years. But despite the drop in performance, replacing David will be no easy feat. He is arguably one of the most underrated linebackers of his generation, with a strong case as an all-time great at the position.

As of right now, David is set to become a free agent in March after finishing his latest one-year, $10 million contract. While his future as a player remains a mystery, the team’s coaching situation is more certain. Despite missing the playoffs for the first time in four years, head coach Todd Bowles is expected to stay with the team, even as other organizations across the league are making major coaching changes.

Lavonte David opens up on Todd Bowles’ return to the team

Lavonte David confirmed that the team has deferred to him on the decision for the 2026 season, making it clear that they are eager for his return rather than letting him test free agency. However, the veteran linebacker revealed a major condition for his potential return: the presence of head coach Todd Bowles. 

“Him as a man, as a person, everybody in the locker room loves him,” David said in the podcast. “Obviously, the media and the fans give him a hard time because you don’t see no character out of him, but you know we see it all, so that’s why we love him and it definitely wouldn’t have been a different talk if he wasn’t coming back, but that’s my guy…we have constant communication and he’ll be one of the first people to know what my decision would be.”

David admitted that he is only considering playing another year because Bowles is remaining on staff, stating bluntly that if the coach hadn’t been retained, there would be “no shot” of his return.

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The decision to keep Bowles comes after a turbulent season where the Buccaneers’ streak of NFC South titles finally came to an end. Despite the team finishing with an 8–9 record and failing to make the playoffs, NFL insiders confirmed this week that Bowles will return for a fifth season. 

While the team started strong at 6–2, they struggled down the stretch, losing seven of their final nine games. Even with the disappointing finish, Bowles maintained that his overall resume, which includes three division titles in four years, earned him another year, a sentiment the Glazer family ultimately agreed with.

Statistically, the Bowles era has been a mix of consistency and missed opportunities. He holds a 35–33 record as head coach, and while he secured three straight division crowns from 2022 to 2024, his teams finished below .500 twice. 

Critics often point out that the NFC South has been one of the league’s weaker divisions during this run, and the Bucs have managed only one playoff victory under his leadership.

Nevertheless, his strong relationship with key players like David remains a pillar of the locker room. With Bowles’s return confirmed, the decision now rests solely on David’s willingness to endure another physically demanding season for the only franchise he’s ever known.