Barkley, Henry, Gibbs … And Bucky Irving
December 16th, 2024
Bucs electric rookie running back Bucky Irving isn’t just having a strong rookie season.
The wild reality is that Irving is one of the best and most versatile running backs in the NFL. And he was a late fourth-round pick, No. 127 overall.
Joe would love to know what’s being said in Miami, where the Dolphins drafted running back Jaylen Wright five picks before the Bucs snagged Irving. Wright has been a rather typical rookie, and now he’s Miami’s No. 3 running back spending most of his time on the bench.
Irving, however, has 852 rushing yards on 152 carries. That’s 5.6 yards per carry. Only Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry and Jahmyr Gibbs can claim to be doing better among full-time running backs. And those four are in their own stratosphere in that key stat.
Irving also leads the entire NFL in catch percentage. He’s caught a ridiculous 38 of 40 balls thrown his way.
The fun thing is Irving is improving as the season marches on. That’s probably equal parts him and the jelling Bucs offensive line, plus stud playcaller Liam Coen learning what works best.
Enjoy it, Bucs fans. Joe sure is.
As Joe documented last night, Bucs fans are watching the greatest running game in the 49-season history of the franchise.
December 16th, 2024 at 9:42 am
Draft is more luck than skill. Glad we have bucky he should get 20 carries minimum a game
December 16th, 2024 at 9:47 am
Draft has a little luck involved but it’s no secret why the teams who consistently draft well are good and the ones who don’t are usually bad.
Bucky plus the O Line and Coen is why he’s successful. It’s a team game and yesterday was an AWESOME team win
December 16th, 2024 at 9:57 am
“…the greatest running game in the 49-season history of the franchise.: Agreed Joe. I’ve watched the Bucs running game since their very first game in 1976. Names that include Bell, Eckwood, Rhett, Wilder, Dunn, Alstott and others. I’ve never seen anything like this, although Dunn and Alstott were close. Enjoy it Bucs fans.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:07 am
Getting Bucky has zero to do with luck.
It’s been well documented that Coen listened to his friend at Oregon and chose him over Ray Davis.
Ray Davis has 87 carries for 357 yds and 3 TDs. A paltry 4.1 yds a carry in comparison.
All the praise goes to Coen.
Bucky is a steal.
Annnnnd McMillan is looking like the stud we thought he could be.
I loved the jawing. Shows he s gaining confidence.
LFG Bucs
December 16th, 2024 at 10:13 am
The Bucs can get some respect by running the Cowboys into the ground. Bury Cooper Rush too. LFG!
December 16th, 2024 at 10:20 am
Dallas is number 22 against pass and number 29 against rush and 26 overall yards allowed. They are number 30 in scoring defense. Bucs could score 50 on SNF.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:22 am
we know how good are 2 top runners are-buckys nursing a back problem and white limped off the field multiple times-its time to see if Sean Tucker can carry the team and get some time for the other 2 to rest up we will need them.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:27 am
Licht & Liam 2028!
December 16th, 2024 at 10:28 am
Joe(s) are awesome! West coast game and you’re able to pump out all this great stuff. I’m going to get fired …
December 16th, 2024 at 10:32 am
Luck is the residue of design.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:35 am
I can recall Kentucky’s Ray Davis being on the board when we picked….with his Coach, Liam Coen on board all suspected we would pick Davis….
Curious as to what Coen’s thoughts were…..or was it completely driven by Licht.
Regardless, right decision for sure.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:40 am
@TBBF – Coen has already commented that one of his best friends coached Bucky at Oregon and that he was everything they look for in a player. He’s also three years younger than Ray Davis who just turned 25 last month.
December 16th, 2024 at 10:47 am
😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃
December 16th, 2024 at 11:00 am
NINE YEARS!!!!
Barring injury, Bucky will be the first 1K yard RB since The Muscle Hamster in 2015.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:00 am
We sure got lucky with Bucky! And it’s not just his powerhouse moves, it’s his smile and humbleness. Goes a long way.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:17 am
Please do not leave Bucky alone in blitz pick up role as that area of his skill set is lacking.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:23 am
Yeah, age was the big negative on Davis, especially at a position where most have already ‘declined’ (&/or) are completely outta the league at 28-years old. You’re not seeing very many RB’s thriving past then, especially those drafted outside of the first-round. So, what is the best you can expect to get outta Ray Davis… Maybe, 4-5 seasons at BEST.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:36 am
yung buckster on a rampage…
toss in savage qb…
and beastly OC…
with the likes of rb1, big mike, a fast developing mcmillan and a frothy OL…
and this team’s lookin’ like contenders
December 16th, 2024 at 11:36 am
Bucky is putting White to shame 😊
December 16th, 2024 at 11:41 am
Scouts totally missed on Bucky. Read the pre draft reports. “Unique talent…durability questions…possible third down make, frame is too frail…breaks tackles…not suited to today’s NFL.”
December 16th, 2024 at 11:47 am
Man i cant stop thinking how many long TD runs we would be watching if he was just a little quicker, they always catch him from behind lol.
Lets hope he will be durable because he is a really good back.
Go Bucs
December 16th, 2024 at 11:48 am
Barkley vs Steelers 19 for 65 yards 3.4 average.
Gibbs vs Bills 8 for 31 3.9 average.
Brag up Buckey all you want but when he’s facing a good defense he will fail to produce.
Cowboys were a little healthier than they had been and held Hubbard to 10 for 32 with a 3.2 average. Even the Packers shut down the Seahawks best available to the tune of 7 for 30 if you take away the one 24 yard run in garbage time.
Bucs may be the best in the NFCS as of today but are a far cry from any of the other teams that will make the Playoffs except for the Commanders.
Shut down the run and make the Bucs one dimensional, blanket Evans and team will struggle to score 20 let alone 40. More throws to Evans will be turnover worthy than dropping in a basket.
At best One and Done. Nothing wrong with being 7th or 8th best out of 16 teams in the NFC. But then again we’ll have to see how they do against the 3 remaining scrub teams they will face. One as a stand alone game in front of everybody next Sunday night.
Only so many times players will run into a good team having a bad night. Bucs caught both both the Lions and Chargers on that condition when they played them.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:56 am
Me thinks Coen came here knowing what works.
December 16th, 2024 at 11:56 am
adam from ny,
Agreed, I like our chances moving forward and the team seems to all be coming together at the right time of the year.
And we can unleash our secret weapon Sean Tucker at some point too (whenever we decide that we really need some extra juice).
We look setup for success. SB or bust
December 16th, 2024 at 11:57 am
Dunn and Alstott were a better combo in my opinion.
White is decent but turns the ball over too much.
Bucky is every bit as good as Dunn, potentially better.
Alstott in my opinion is the best power back in Bucs history.
And he has a championship ring to prove it.
December 16th, 2024 at 12:08 pm
Xristos, agreed. That 50 yard run showed why he fell in the draft. He’s quick and can change direction but straight away speed isn’t special. That’s OK though as I’ll take his skill set that consistently gets 5-15 yard gains over a one trick speedster who might break one every 4 games
December 16th, 2024 at 12:15 pm
Lions down to 1 RB with Montgomery out
NFC is wide open
The expectation should be Superbowl nothing less
December 16th, 2024 at 12:17 pm
BillyBucco Says:
December 16th, 2024 at 10:07 am
Getting Bucky has zero to do with luck.
It’s been well documented that Coen listened to his friend at Oregon and chose him over Ray Davis.
Ray Davis has 87 carries for 357 yds and 3 TDs. A paltry 4.1 yds a carry in comparison.
All the praise goes to Coen.
Bucky is a steal.
I would love to read the source for this information. I missed it and would love to get the insight. What a bold move by all, to overrule the Scouts, GM, HC to listen to a new OC’s friend at Oregon over everyone else. Can’t wait to learn more.
December 16th, 2024 at 12:34 pm
Over 2000 on the year is pretty good. If Mr Mar’Keise Irving is continually fed the ball enough he will crack 1000 yards. White is back up material. Too bad staff doesn’t trust Tucker because he’s lights out faster than Irving and White and runs harder.
December 16th, 2024 at 12:47 pm
@Stanglassman – Coen said it himself during one of his pressers. You can find it on the Bucs YT channel.
December 16th, 2024 at 1:18 pm
yeah…alstott was simply just different…
gruden ruined the 2nd half of his career…
then came the neck issue…
his numbers were greatly diminished under gruden and it hurt his hall chances…
somehow chucky barely knew who he was- even referred to him as mark alstott…heha…!
just go to mike’s highlight footage on youtube…it’s hall of fame type stuff
December 16th, 2024 at 1:21 pm
the thing is………..
bucky seems kind of different too…
his vision thru the line is absolutely spectacular…
spectacular is the word…
it’s early…but he appears to be different in his own special way too…
—
go bucky go…
run bucky run…
score bucky score…
December 16th, 2024 at 1:47 pm
Does it really matter if keeps getting 10 yard runs and pops off 40-50 yard runs but gets caught from behind? Sure Barkley and Henry have elite speed but neither of them is as difficult to tackle as Irving. He is shifty-nifty and fluid. Henry is that unique blend of power and speed. Barkley is flat out fast. Both can carry the load better than Bucky because they are stronger but Irving is that guy that will get better and stronger as he matures. Henry is an older guy and Barkley is getting there to the point where he is peaking production.
I just hope the Bucs don’t do to Bucky what they did to Cadliac Williams. Keep him to 15 carries and screen to him more often.
December 16th, 2024 at 1:52 pm
I thought Wright would be a star in the NFL. Glad he was gone when the Bucs picked. Love me some Bucky!
December 16th, 2024 at 1:52 pm
Alstott and Dunn carried the offense for several years. It is way too early to compare, or to compare Bucky to Dunn.
I am not sure he would compare all that favorably to Cadillac Williams or the muscle hamster guy. Both great backs for a limited time. Bucky is already banged up.
December 16th, 2024 at 2:03 pm
@D Cone you could say the same for multiple of the Bucs losses this season. Bucs (the good team) had a bad game against the Falcons twice. I would argue the Bucs are a good team based on the fact that they didn’t just get lucky with their win against the Chargers as a one off game.
The Bucs beat the Lions, Commanders, Eagles, and Chargers all playoff teams potentially. We also played a close game against the Chiefs. The only games where we got completely dominated imo was against the Broncos and Ravens. The loss to the 49ers was by 3 points and could have gone our way easily. Then the two losses to the Falcons were games where we under performed and the refs put their finger on the scale.
December 16th, 2024 at 2:48 pm
So thrilled about Bucky. Had no clue when they drafted him just how good he’d be. They picked the right guy and then some. So enjoy watching him run the ball for us
December 16th, 2024 at 2:49 pm
Dang D cone, we have enough negative Nancys in here. Go take some meds or something.
December 16th, 2024 at 7:47 pm
The OLine is getting its act together and jelling. They are also not the walking wounded. That’s why the RBs are scoring, and ME13 looks like a young pup. Has Coen called any bootleg options and QB rollout plays for Baker? I doubt it and I am getting pissed. Those plays are available. Why won’t Conehead call them?
December 16th, 2024 at 8:13 pm
I hope this is this Bucs “identity” for the next decade. Run the mfn ball!!
December 17th, 2024 at 1:03 am
Heh Joe do we get a compensatory pic for Carlton Davis?
December 17th, 2024 at 9:29 pm
Whatever Dcone. Lions and Commanders. Looks like the lions were having another bad day when Buffalo caught em too huh? The Commanders probably won’t make the playoffs .. we beat both their asses because we are the more physical team. Detroit is all finesse. They only beat the cowboys bad.Theyre like the Cheifs. They’re beatable. Buffalo almost put a 50 piece on Detroit on America’s game of the week and allowed Josh Allen to win the mvp in that game . Allowing 50 points and 600 yards of offense 3 weeks before the playoffs start doesn’t bode well for a GOOD TEAM. Now they lost their workhorse D Montgomery and probably all of their confidence in front of America. The Vikings are the only team in the NFC Playoff picture that I would be concerned about. NONE of those other playoff teams? We beat all of them everytime we play em..Dude where have have you been the past 20 times we’ve played the Eagles and the Packers? I could see Tampa Bay easily in the conference championship game if not the super this team is peaking r now on both sides if the ball. I don’t care who they’re playing it’s the NFL..you put 40 on the best D in the NFL in their house… Mayfield 4 td, Evans over 150 2 td, Mcmillion 3 td in 2 games , with Cade Otten and Sterling Shepard and you got the best 1-2 punch running for 185 a game? Some of those teams you mentioned , especially Detroit , they’re reeling …they will after that azz whooping they just took and the injuries.. Tampa Bay is a scary team r now don’t listen to that idiot.