Breaking news: Rachaad White so frustrated that he sobbed on the sidelines

This narrative isn’t intended to criticize anyone. Instead, Joe adds this detail to highlight the passion of players.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ running back Rachaad White is driven by a strong desire to win and perform at his peak.

One traditional measure of success for running backs, albeit possibly outdated, is reaching 1,000 rushing yards in a season. With the NFL’s transition to a 17-game season, this equates to an average of 58 yards per game. While this figure may seem insignificant, fans are drawn to big, round numbers, hence the continued focus on the 1,000-yard mark, whether rushing or receiving.

White fell just shy of this milestone in the 2023 regular season, finishing with 990 yards. Despite the Buccaneers’ decision to run out the clock in a crucial game against the Carolina Panthers to secure a division win, White accepted the team’s strategy.

 

However, he couldn’t hold back his emotions and cried on the sidelines.

After a challenging rookie season running the ball, White had hoped to reach the 1,000-yard mark in 2023, but it didn’t happen.

Speaking with CBS Radio personality Jim Rome in Las Vegas, White revealed that he shed tears when he fell short of 1,000 yards.

“I understood the situation against Carolina,” White explained. “We needed to secure the win and the division title. While I respected the coaches’ decision, it still hurt. Shedding tears on the field just shows how much you care and the passion you have.”

Part of White’s motivation for reaching 1,000 yards was knowing that the Buccaneers had gone several years without a running back hitting that mark, and he wanted to break that streak.

The last Buccaneers running back to surpass 1,000 rushing yards was Doug Martin in 2015, during Lovie Smith’s final season as head coach.

When asked if he was upset with the team for not helping him reach the milestone, White replied that he wasn’t, as securing the win and another division title was the primary goal.

Nevertheless, falling short of the 1,000-yard mark served as motivation for White, especially as the team headed into the playoffs.

While White fell short of 1,000 yards during the regular season, he performed solidly in the playoffs, rushing for 55 and 57 yards in games against Philadelphia and Detroit, respectively.

When Rome inquired whether White was disappointed that Baker Mayfield didn’t deviate from the sidelines’ play calls, similar to Jameis Winston’s past actions, to set up White for the milestone, White emphasized that reaching the playoffs was a far greater priority.