The Bucs Have Something Special in Bucky Irving
Heading into the 2024 offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers already had a young and impressive running back in Rachaad White, who had put up 1,500 total yards in his second NFL season.
But the Bucs still wanted to find another back to pair with him, hoping to find an explosive playmaker who could create extra yards after contact. That led most fans and analysts to expect them to target a bigger power back to pair with White.
Many were confused when the Bucs spent a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on Oregon's Bucky Irving, a tiny back who measured in at 5-foot-9 and 192 pounds at this year's NFL Scouting Combine.
Any confusion has long since been put to rest, though, as Irving has continued to be what he was for the Ducks, which is one of the most elusive, versatile, productive running backs in the country.
Despite his undersized frame, anyone who watched Irving's college film saw a runner who was much more powerful than you'd expect, who excelled at running through contact and making tacklers miss with his toughness as much as his quickness and agility.
Heading into Sunday's key road game against the division-rival Carolina Panthers, Irving ranked second in the NFL among rookies in rushing yards, and was a top-five back in the league in terms of yards per touch. Those numbers are sure to go up after his performance in a 26-23 overtime victory.
Irving touched the ball 28 times on Sunday, racking up 185 yards and scoring a key touchdown that put the Bucs ahead in the fourth quarter. On that particular drive, Irving touched the ball eight times, accounting for 62 of the team's 65 yards to erase a six-point deficit after the offense struggled in the first half. He created huge plays down the stretch, despite suffering a hip injury just before halftime that didn't appear to slow him down as he helped lead Tampa Bay to a critical win.
The week before, Irving needed just 18 touches to tally 152 total yards and a score, helping the Bucs dominate the New York Giants 30-7 on the road.
Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen has continued to use Irving and White in tandem, also mixing in a little bit of Sean Tucker's more physical running style, helping turn around one of the league's worst ground attacks over the past couple of seasons and making it one of the best in 2024. White and Tucker will remain heavily involved in the game-planning moving forward, but it's clear who the more dangerous man in that group is, and it's the smallest guy on the field.
Irving's ability to impact the game as both a runner and a receiver gives Coen and the Bucs unlimited potential in terms of creativity in how they deploy him, and creates a ton of frustration for opposing defenses that still haven't found a way to slow him down.
Considering he's still just 12 games into his NFL career, it's safe to say that Irving is already one of the biggest steals from this year's draft, and is quickly becoming one of the most electrifying players in the entire league. He's still barely scratching the surface of his potential, which is great for the Bucs and their fan base (as well as fantasy football managers who were wise enough to stash him), and bad news for everyone else.
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