HOUSTON – The conversations with a fellow Pro Bowl linebacker left Devin White convinced that the Texans were the right place for him to reboot his NFL career.
After signing a one-year, $1.125 million, prove-it deal, White is embracing this fresh start and playing for coach DeMeco Ryans, a former Pro Bowl linebacker and NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Recommended Videos
“Coach DeMeco, he’s got a great history of putting out great backers and he’s got a great system,” White said inside the Texans’ locker room in his first interview since joining the defending AFC South champions. “When I talked to him on the phone I felt like everything was genuine. He reached out multiple times, and just told me to come here and compete. He was like, ‘I can’t promise you nothing. You come here and compete, I’ll find a place for you.’ I only can respect that.”
Cut by the Philadelphia Eagles after not playing a regular-season snap and not signed to the lucrative long-term contract he had been seeking from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite achieving Pro Bowl status and winning a Super Bowl title as he picked off Patrick Mahomes and returned it for a touchdown, White was being selective for his next destination.
“I had a lot of opportunities to play, and this team stuck out like a sore thumb,” White said. “They was already rolling, they got a couple guys down right now, but they still rolling, still finding ways to get it done. I just want to add value to it.”
#Texans new linebacker Devin White @DevinWhite__40 embracing fresh start put the past behind him and loved his conversations with DeMeco Ryans @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/GP7VSprb3w
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 24, 2024
White was signed by general manager Nick Caserio, after being released by the Eagles after signing a one-year, $7.5 million contract in March. The Texans signed White without a workout after auditioning free agent linebackers Jabrill Cox and Michael Barrett.
White, 26, (6-foot, 237 pounds), has recorded 566 career tackles, 23 sacks, six forced fumbles, nine fumble recoveries, and three interceptions. He requested a trade last year in Tampa Bay, but wound up playing out the fifth-year option on his rookie deal as no common ground could be reached on a contract. This year, he was inactive for the first four games and didn’t play against Tampa Bay for undisclosed personal reasons.
A former LSU star and fifth overall pick, White has been at the top of his profession before. Perhaps this change of scenery can get him back to that level.
“It’s no secret that Devin has been an All-Pro, top linebacker in this league coming out of college,” Ryans said. “He was a no-miss player. He went top 10 in the Draft, I mean, he was an exceptional talent. So, what happened and why he’s here, no one knows. Life happens to us all. You just have to keep punching, keep attacking each day with the right mindset, and opportunity for Devin is to come in here and compete. Again, nothing’s promised. We don’t know what the future holds. It’s just one day at a time, compete every day and we’ll see where we end up. We wanted to add him to give him an opportunity to see where he can come in and help us. That’s what it was about.”
“Just obviously experienced. Has played linebacker at a pretty high level in this league. So, just an opportunity for him to come in and kind of see how he fits in the system and fits in the room and we’ll go from there. So, obviously, kind of in the process of kind of learning what he does for us and how long he takes to adapt to our style and our calls and stuff. But his trio of production and experience playing at a high level in this league. So, a good opportunity for us and for him.”
White has 4.42 speed in the 40-yard dash and size and hitting ability working in his favor. He was once one of the rangiest linebackers in the NFL. It didn’t work out with the Eagles, though, under defensive coordinator Vic Fangio as they started Nakobe Dean ahead of him after he injured his ankle. White once told the Buccaneers he didn’t want to go in the game due to a foot injury, but it was widely regarded that he didn’t want to come off the bench.
Last year, he had 83 tackles and 2 1/2 sacks and dealt with foot and groin injuries before losing his starting job to K.J. Britt toward the end of the season.
Regardless of the past, it’s, just that, in the past for the Louisiana native.
“I ain’t thinking about Philly,” White said. “I did what I had to do. I put my best foot forward and I did everything I had to do. It didn’t work out in my favor. God gave me another opportunity right here in the South. I’m enjoying it. I’m embracing it. I’m coming to work every day and put my best foot forward.”
For now, White is a backup. The Texans hope to get starter and team captain Azeez Al-Shaair back in the weeks to come from a knee injury. Fellow starting linebacker Henry To’oTo’o is in the final stages of the NFL concussion protocol and his status will be determined Sunday morning. The Texans plan to start Neville Hewitt and Jake Hansen for the second week in a row.
Eventually, White hopes to get his shot to show what he can do again and display his high-energy style under Ryans’ direction.
“He wants you to go make plays,” White said. “He talked about being around the ball, attacking the ball,. I feel like that’s what I’m about to play. My game allows me to play fast and just play with a lot of energy around him. I feel like every thing that he talked about, I feel like I got it in my game and everything that he wants to add to my game, I’m willing to receive that. I’m an open book and I respect everything.
“At the end of the day, I’m where my feet is right now. I only care about here. All the stuff I did in the past years is on my resume. I’ve got a big goal and that’s just to help these guys. If I can get on the field in any way or form to help them, they’ll obviously be doing me a big favor as well and helping me. I’ve just got to get these guys to trust me.”
'I ain't thinking about Philly' #Texans linebacker Devin White @KPRC2 https://t.co/EfTrb88PZE pic.twitter.com/SZxhs2Ijuj
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 24, 2024
The swagger of the Texans was appealing to White, and now he’s a part of that culture.
“I just want to have fun on a winning team and playing great defense,” he said. “I want to be a part of that. These guys here have got a lot of swagger. I’m a player with a lot of swag. I just want to add to it and come out victorious.”
A year ago, White competed against the Texans in a Buccaneers loss. He was coming after Pro Bowl quarterback C.J. Stroud full-speed, but the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year avoided the sack
“I didn’t get to talk to him about it yet, I am not even sure if he has seen it,” Stroud said. “I just talked to him, he seems like a real good dude, I played against him last year. He is a heck of a football player, he’s really fast. I feel like I got up a little bit, but I got out of bounds too, I am not trying to get hit by him. I think he is a great player, great addition so shoutout to Nick for doing his thing once again. I am in love with that choice Nick made and I think he will be a great addition to this defense.”
Read more on the Texans:
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.
