AP

The Buccaneers made linebacker Devin White the fifth overall pick in the draft. In the eyes of coach Bruce Arians, White could be No. 1 in one specific category.

“He’s come in, he’s so mature,” Arians told Ira Kaufman of JoeBucsFan.com. “You know, and he’s in great condition. He’s extremely bright. He loves it. You know, you get these guys once in a lifetime. They all got physical skills, but they don’t love it. I mean, they wouldn’t do it for free. This cat would do it for free as long as he can ride his horses. . . . Some guys just have that, so don’t be afraid of it. Tyrann Mathieu walked in; he wasn’t afraid of it. Now we had Patrick Peterson, we had Calais Campbell, no, [Mathieu] took over. Now he had really smart guys around him to help him, too, which we’ve got some guys like that.”

So the Buccaneers have a guy who ideally will become the anchor of the defense, providing the kind of leadership that every NFL defense desperately needs. With so much focus on the Tampa Bay offense, it’s critical that the defense improve if the team is going to improve, and White could be the key to making that happen.