Was Jordan Whitehead the Bucs Best Free Agency Addition?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made many offseason moves from re-signing key players, finding impact players in the draft, and signing free agents.

Re-investing in safety Jordan Whitehead might be the best move they made considering how much he has meant to this Bucs secondary in the first couple weeks of the season.

The Buccaneers drafted Whitehead back in 2018 and played four seasons with the team before signing with the New York Jets in 2022. Whitehead fine-tuned his skills with the Jets and became a more productive player. He recorded six interceptions over the last two seasons while only bringing in five with the Bucs over four years.

Through two games of the 2024 season, it has been clear Whitehead is all over the field making plays in the strong safety slot. The Bucs have needed him without another safety Antoine Winfield Jr. and a depleted defense.

He especially showed up in the Bucs 20-16 win over the Detroit Lions where he totaled 11 tackles. Whitehead has 19 tackles through the first two weeks which leads the team.

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Whitehead is tied for third among all NFL safeties in tackles this season. His physicality as a player has grown so much since his last stint as a Buc.

The veteran safety had his two highest single-season tackle totals with 89 in 2022 and 97 in 2023. He can make big plays in the box and plays downhill, which tailors perfectly to what Todd Bowles is trying to do on defense.