Hidden Hogs: Why Bucky Irving Is Going Too Late in Fantasy Drafts
There are certain players who become easy to overlook in fantasy football.
Maybe they disappointed last season. Maybe they missed time with an injury. Maybe their team added another running back. Maybe their previous breakout season feels like ancient history because fantasy managers have already moved on to the next shiny object.
Bucky Irving checks every one of those boxes.
And that’s exactly why you should be interested. Irving is currently being drafted around RB20 in PPR formats, with a consensus overall ADP around 44. That’s a perfectly reasonable price if you believe Irving is simply the guy we saw in 2025.
I don’t.
I think fantasy managers are putting far too much weight on Irving’s bad sophomore season and not nearly enough weight on what he demonstrated as a rookie.
The 2025 Season Wasn’t the Player
Let’s start with the obvious. Irving was not good statistically in 2025. He played only 10 games, rushing 173 times for 588 yards — a miserable 3.4 yards per carry — while scoring just one rushing touchdown. He added 30 receptions for 277 yards and three receiving touchdowns.
Those numbers aren’t something we should ignore, but context matters. Irving suffered both foot and shoulder injuries, with the shoulder injury eventually requiring surgery and costing him seven games. He played 95 fewer snaps than he did during his rookie season.
Bucky Irving didn’t forget how to run. He was a second-year player trying to play through significant injuries before eventually being shut down.
Remember What Bucky Irving Looked Like in 2024
Before we bury Irving because of one injury-plagued season, let’s remember what he did as a rookie. In 2024, Irving rushed for 1,122 yards on 207 carries, averaging an absurd 5.4 yards per carry. He also caught 47 passes for 392 yards. That’s 1,514 yards from scrimmage in his rookie season (more than Bijan Robinson or De’Von Achane in their rookie seasons).
Irving wasn’t merely a promising rookie. He was one of the most productive rookies in football. He led all rookies in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns and scrimmage yards, earned All-Rookie honors and became the first Tampa Bay running back to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season since Doug Martin in 2015.
That player didn’t disappear. He got hurt. There’s a substantial difference.
And Here’s the Part I Really Like
Irving’s efficiency wasn’t a fluke. The Buccaneers say he has forced 111 missed tackles since 2024, which ranks 11th in the NFL, while his 31.5% forced-missed-tackle rate ranks third. That’s important because it tells us what kind of running back we’re dealing with. Irving isn’t dependent upon receiving 25 carries and hoping his offensive line opens enormous holes.
He creates yards himself.
He has the lateral quickness to make defenders miss, the contact balance to survive between the tackles and the vision to find running lanes. That’s precisely the type of skill set that can become extremely valuable when a running back’s workload increases.
And Irving’s workload is about to get very interesting.
The Rachaad White Problem Is Basically Gone
One of the biggest obstacles to Irving’s fantasy value in previous seasons was Rachaad White. White was a significant part of Tampa Bay’s offense and had been the team’s primary three-down option at various points, but White is no longer a threat.
The Buccaneers have entered 2026 with White having moved on, leaving Irving as the incumbent back and adding Kenneth Gainwell to the room. Although that doesn’t mean Irving is suddenly guaranteed 300 touches, it does mean the path to a much larger workload is considerably clearer. And that matters because we have already seen what Irving can do when he gets meaningful volume.
Is Kenneth Gainwell a Problem?
Gainwell is a legitimate NFL running back, but I don’t think the presence of Gainwell means Irving can’t be a fantasy RB1.
The Buccaneers have been talking about using both backs in their new offense. Training-camp reports describe a system featuring more wide-zone concepts, heavy play-action and multiple personnel groupings, which is actually encouraging for Irving.
Tampa Bay’s new offensive structure appears designed to take advantage of the things Irving does well — particularly his vision, lateral movement and ability to operate in space. The team has specifically noted that Irving could be especially dangerous with more wide-zone concepts.
That’s not speculation based solely on fantasy Twitter. That’s the direction the Buccaneers themselves say they want to take their offense.
The Receiving Ability Is the Secret Weapon
This is the part that could turn Irving from a good fantasy running back into a great one. Irving isn’t just a runner. In his rookie season, he caught 47 passes for 392 yards. In only 10 games last year, he caught another 30 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns.
Across his first two seasons, Irving has accumulated 77 receptions for 669 yards and three receiving touchdowns. That’s a very useful fantasy floor.
If Irving gets 200-plus carries and 40-plus receptions, we’re talking about a player with a realistic path toward 1,200-1,400 total yards before we even start talking about touchdowns. And if the Buccaneers’ new offense creates more opportunities for running backs in the passing game?
The ceiling gets considerably higher.
The Current Price Is the Opportunity
This is where I think fantasy managers are getting it wrong. I’m not saying Bucky Irving should be drafted ahead of every running back currently going before him. I’m saying the price you’re paying matters.
Right now, you’re getting Irving around the fourth round in many PPR drafts. That’s an interesting price for a 24-year-old running back who:
- Already has a 1,100-yard rushing season
- Has already demonstrated elite tackle-breaking ability
- Has already demonstrated receiving ability
- Has already demonstrated big-play ability
- Is entering his third NFL season
- Is returning from injury
- No longer has Rachaad White occupying the backfield
- Is expected to be the primary option competing with Kenneth Gainwell
- Is entering an offense that could accentuate his strengths
That’s a lot of boxes to check for a player being drafted outside the top 15-20 running backs in most formats.
The Injury Is the Risk
There is, of course, a legitimate reason to be cautious. Irving’s 2025 season was a disaster from a fantasy perspective. His 3.4 yards per carry was particularly ugly, and we can’t simply pretend it happened.
There is also legitimate uncertainty regarding how much of the Tampa Bay workload will belong to Irving versus Gainwell and Sean Tucker.
But here’s the important part: The risk is already reflected in the price.
Fantasy managers aren’t drafting Irving as though he’s guaranteed to repeat his 2024 season. They’re drafting him as a player who has questions and that’s exactly when I want to buy.
The 2026 Version of Bucky Irving Could Be a League Winner
The Buccaneers aren’t easing Irving back into action. When training camp opened, head coach Todd Bowles said Irving was “full-go,” and reports indicated that he was taking first-team reps and operating at full speed. Recent reports say that Sean Tucker will likely be cut in a cost saving measure, opening up goal line carries for Irving (after he totaled zero last year).
That doesn’t guarantee a breakout, but it removes one of the biggest concerns heading into the season. And now we have to ask ourselves a simple question:
What if the real Bucky Irving is closer to the 2024 player than the 2025 player?
If that’s the case, you’re getting a running back with legitimate top-10 fantasy upside at a price that doesn’t require a top-10 finish to justify the pick. That’s the type of player I want on my roster.
There are safer running backs. There are probably running backs with a higher projected floor. But there aren’t many players being drafted around RB20 who have already shown the ability to produce at the level Irving did as a rookie and now have a clearer path to touches.
That’s why I think Bucky Irving is being underdrafted.
Fantasy managers are drafting the player they saw last year.
I’m drafting the player I think Tampa Bay is getting back.