Rachaad White may have been efficient in fantasy football but highly inefficient in real-world games. Therefore, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers decided to bring new blood to the running back room. They drafted Bucky Irving, and we instantly had a fantasy football dilemma. With the roster set and White as the leading running back for the Buccaneers, we have to identify if picking up Irving will be a good move for our fantasy roster this season.
Let’s break down the rookie running back to see if he is worth the squeeze of a waiver wire selection.
Should Bucky Irving Be Added on the Fantasy Waiver Wire in Week 1
Irving is 24% rostered in Sleeper leagues, meaning we have a chance at a running back who could win over his backfield in the next few weeks. It’s rare that a veteran coach moves on from a veteran running back after one week, so even if Irving has a fantastic Week One, we must temper our expectations. Instead, we must realize this is a long play where Irving has a chance to become the lead back after two to three weeks of consistently better-than-White play.
Irving does have the skillset to become the lead running back in Tampa Bay and for our fantasy football teams. Irving may not have the best speed, but his ability to hit the hole explosively is something that White could use in his game. He has incredible footwork where a defender could miss a tackle if they were both locked in a coffin. Irving doesn’t just run the ball; his hands are reliable and look natural in film. This trait is particularly scary for White truthers as White made his money in fantasy through the passing game.
Although Irving looks to use his center of gravity to bounce off defenders between his tackles, he does have issues that need to be cleaned up to consistently see the field and have a veteran coaching staff behind him as a starter. Sometimes Irving becomes too North/South with his runs, which sounds impossible, but it means he does miss the chances to bounce it outside and break a homerun-style play for his team. Like most rookies, he has to elevate his pass-blocking abilities. Without an elevation in this part of his game, he will never see the field consistently enough to overtake White in fantasy football and the depth chart.
You could take the swing on Irving and hope for production from him. Just know you won’t see 20+ points from the rookie in the first few weeks. As he works on his pass-blocking skillset, you should see him more often on the field, as the Buccaneers are tired of White’s 36th-best yards per rushing attempt.
In this narrative, Irving presents as a handcuff to White. The Buccaneers face two of the easiest matchups in fantasy football for running backs in 2023. The Washington Commanders and the Denver Broncos allowed 20+ fantasy points per game to the position. However, the other two games against the Philadelphia Eagles and the Detroit Lions are extremely tough matchups. Neither team allows more than 14.7 fantasy points per game (FPPG) to running backs, while the Lions allow a league-best 12.2 FPPG.
We would focus our efforts elsewhere due to the lack of pass-blocking within Irving’s game. It will take him some time to become a fantasy football force.