Report: Bucs think Bucky Irving warrants ‘high-volume RB1 role’ this season

Second-year running back Bucky Irving reportedly could be in line for a massive role with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2025 season.

“I’m going to try to take running back Bucky Irving pretty early in my fantasy drafts,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote. “They love that guy, and while they also like Rachaad White and have a role planned for him, Irving is viewed by people in the building as special enough to warrant a high-volume RB1 role. That includes pass-catching work.”

A fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Irving played in all 17 games for Tampa Bay in the 2025 season and made three starts. He finished sixth in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting after putting together a pretty impressive 2024 season.

Irving carried the ball 207 times for the Bucs and finished with 1,122 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. He averaged 5.4 yards per carry, and the youngster made an impact in the receiving game as well.

He caught 47 of his 52 targets for 392 yards. While Irving did not score a touchdown through the air, he did become an important checkdown option for Baker Mayfield in the Tampa Bay offense.

“His vision,” Mayfield told Graziano about what makes Irving special. “His timing of when he’s supposed to hit the gas. He’s patient, patient and then hits it. I just think he’s always looking to score. It’s tough to see in practice. Like, last year at this time I was like, ‘Eh. We’ll see. It looks good.’ But didn’t expect it to be like it was. He’s just tough to bring down. He’s strong, he’s got great vision, he understands it, and then also you add in the ability to catch too. He’s well-rounded.”

Tampa Bay won the NFC South in the 2024 season, but it was knocked out in the playoffs by the Washington Commanders. In that playoff game, Irving had 17 carries for 77 yards and two catches for six yards and a touchdown.

He already received a ton of touches as a rookie, so it appears that Irving could be one of the most-used running backs in the league if Tampa Bay does use him in a “high-volume RB1 role.”

Tampa Bay has White and Sean Tucker as options to spell Irving in the 2025 season. However, Irving was much more effective than White (4.3 yards per carry last season) and ended up receiving more carries than him in 2024. White finished the season with 144 carries and 51 catches for Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay will open up the regular season on Sunday, Sept. 7 against the Atlanta Falcons.