Devin White's Contract Wishes Are 'Champagne Problems,' Bucs Asst. Larry Foote Says

Devin White requested a trade from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last month due to frustration about his contract negotiations. While speaking with reporters this week, Bucs assistant Larry Foote addressed the linebacker's situation.

"Well, he's not going to be the first (making such a demand), and he's not going to be the last. We know that," Foote said on Wednesday, per NFL.com's Kevin Patra. "Like I told him, he gets paid $11 million this year—those are champagne problems."

The Buccaneers selected White fifth overall in the 2019 draft out of LSU. The 25-year-old is entering the final year of his rookie contract.

While White did request a trade, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht told reporters ahead of the 2023 draft that the franchise has "no intention" of trading him, per NFL.com's Nick Shook:

"I have all the respect in the world for Devin. He's done some great things for us as a player, and we look forward to more from him in the future, so he's on our team. We are looking forward to this season. We are gearing up for this season with the draft right now, free agency, and, you know, looking forward to him being a part of this team. If he has the kind of year that we all think he's capable of, we can hopefully put this to rest, and everybody's happy."

White has been a staple in the Tampa Bay defense since being drafted, though his numbers have dipped since he posted nine sacks and 140 tackles in 2020.

Last season, he posted 5.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles, five pass breakups, 124 tackles, eight tackles for a loss and 16 quarterback hits in 17 games.

The Bucs have solid depth at linebacker with Lavonte David, Shaq Barrett, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and K.J. Britt, among others, so it's not necessarily surprising that they have yet to extend White's contract.