Jordan Whitehead suffered a gruesome neck injury in a 2025 car crash that forced him to miss the season, but the one-time Super Bowl champion is reportedly healthy and ready to restart his career. A fourth-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh product quickly earned a starting job in the Buccaneers’ secondary and played a vital role on the 2020 Super Bowl champions. Starting and appearing in all 16 games, the safety finished the season with two interceptions, four passes defended, two sacks, 74 tackles, and nine tackles-for-loss.
Since then, Jordan Whitehead spent two seasons with the Jets before re-joining the Buccaneers in 2024. While he never reached an All-Pro level, the safety has been an above-average starter throughout his career and, now entering his age-29 season, should have a handful of good seasons left in his tank. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, the safety has been medically cleared to play and has already met with a few teams.
Jordan Whitehead Ready to Resume NFL Career; Teams Interested
According to Garafolo, the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts have already met with Jordan Whitehead, and more interested parties are likely to emerge in the coming weeks. It’s hard to predict what type of contract Whitehead will demand, but it probably won’t be a big one. He most recently signed a two-year, $9 million deal in 2024, but he’s now two years older and one year removed from playing meaningful football. In short, he carries a decent amount of risk and may not recapture his previous form. A one-year, incentive-laden contract would likely make sense for Whitehead and whichever team signs him.
While Garafolo did not name any interested teams beyond the Colts and Texans, it’s worth noting that Jordan Whitehead met with the Atlanta Falcons and Baltimore Ravens last year. While the team has a new head coach in Kevin Stefanski, members of the Falcons organization should have a pretty good idea of what their longtime division rival can bring to the table. The Ravens, meanwhile, have a long history of making low-risk, medium-reward veteran signings, and Whitehead certainly fits that description. Additionally, the team usually prioritizes depth at the safety position, and that shouldn’t change even with John Harbaugh gone.
