The Bucs are hoping to get back to their winning ways as a team in 2026, and to do that, they need to bounce back on offense. The best way for the offense to get back in rhythm is for the run game to be established early and often. They can achieve that if the workload for Bucky Irving can return to a normal rate, as well as him getting healthy for the first time since his rookie season.
When it comes to that production, PFF’s Nathan Jahnke knows what Irving is capable of and is doing his best to remind fantasy players of it. When he listed out some undervalued players that can be found in the middle rounds of fantasy drafts, the Bucs running back was among them.
Jahnke writes, “Irving has quietly established himself as one of the NFL’s most productive running backs over the past two seasons. His 87.0 PFF overall grade ranks 10th among running backs, and he joins Bijan Robinson, Josh Jacobs and Jahmyr Gibbs as the only backs to earn both PFF rushing and receiving grades above 85.0 during that span. Irving also averaged 20.3 touches per game last season, the fourth-highest mark among running backs.”
Irving will have to compete for touches alongside Kenneth Gainwell, someone who signed for significant money. The team will have a new playcaller in Zac Robinson, who gets a lot of production out of running backs. That latter point should drive home the fact that when it comes to fantasy and production, do not discount Bucky Irving.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Bucs offensive star considered ‘undervalued’ in fantasy football
Reporting by Andrew Harbaugh, Buccaneers Wire / Bucs Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
