Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked to be off to a good start to the 2013 NFL season. With the clock ticking down and the New York Jets out of field goal range, the Buccaneers had the game won, assuming quarterback Geno Smith did not convert a miraculous Hail Mary touchdown pass. Unfortunately, linebacker Lavonte David had to make what might possibly be the biggest boneheaded play of the season for the Buccaneers.
With only seven seconds left on the clock, Smith stepped out of bounds to stop the time so that the Jets could attempt a Hail Mary pass or a 63-yard field goal attempt. However, David apparently thought the quarterback was going to make a rookie mistake by staying in bounds, which led him to deliver a hit that knocked the signal caller down.
It was David who made the colossal mistake as he was hit with a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. It was all the yards New York needed in order to have a more realistic attempt at a game-winning field goal. The 48-yard kick was good and the Jets ended up with an unexpected victory.
“I wouldn’t have hit him if I thought he wasn’t going to stay in bounds,” David said, according to the Tampa Bay Times. “They said he was out of bounds so the guy called the flag. To me, he was in bounds.”
It is definitely an unfortunate way for the second-year player to begin the 2013 season, especially since there are high expectations for the linebacker. If anything, David can learn from his mistake, which will certainly serve him well down the road.
