When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted Bucky Irving in the fourth round out of Oregon, he looked like a quality backup rusher behind incumbent starter Rachaad White.
Widely considered good across the board, not particularly fast, not particularly powerful, and not particularly effective as a receiver, Irving has rapidly become a fan favorite for his on-field theatrics and for rapidly thrusting himself into the Rookie of the Year conversation with 1,017 all-purpose yards from scrimmage on the season so far with five games left to play.
Asked how it feels to find so much success so quickly in Tampa Bay during his Monday media session, Irving gave all the credit to his offensive line, as he believes they have set him up for success.
“I don’t really like taking all the credit. It’s those guys up front. I think I have to do something really nice for those guys for Christmas, because they’re getting the job done,” Irving told reporters. “I really don’t want to take all the credit. Like I said, we have to get more of those guys in here and give them the credit for getting the job done up front.”
Wow, well, if that’s Irving’s mindset this early in his NFL career, he’s bound to continue to succeed, as running backs who credit their offensive linemen are routinely incredibly popular in the locker room.
Todd Bowles is impressed by Bucky Irving’s development in Tampa
Asked during his own media session about Irving’s impressive play through the first 13 weeks of the 2024 NFL season, head coach Todd Bowles celebrated his rookie rusher for feeling increasingly comfortable in the offense, as he’s become a fantastic force alongside White.
“He’s getting more comfortable with the offense. The more comfortable he gets, the more you can give him, the more he can do,” Bowles told reporters. “Like you said, both [Irving and Rachaad White] are running well – we’re happy with both of them. Bucky has a skill you can’t teach – he can make people miss in the hole. He’s tough on the inside. Rachaad [White] had a big run at the end of the game, as well. Using them both together seems to be working out for us.”
While White and Irving don’t have the exact skillsets that fans expect from a thunder-and-lightning rushing attack, they have certainly made things work as a complementary pair in Tampa Bay, with their ground game helping to ease Baker Mayfield’s burden in 2024. If the Buccaneers make some noise in the playoffs, it will largely be because White and Irving helped to set the tempo on the ground.
