Matthew Berry may be lukewarm on Bucky Irving heading into the 2026 season, but the bigger issue for Tampa Bay is whether last year was a blip or the start of something more worrying.
Irving’s follow-up to a breakout rookie year fell off sharply. After piling up 1,122 rushing yards, eight touchdowns and a 5.4 yards-per-carry average in 2024, he managed 588 yards and one rushing score in 10 games last season, finishing at just 3.4 yards per attempt.
The numbers behind that dip are even more jarring. Irving averaged only 2.3 yards after contact per carry, the lowest mark among running backs with at least 100 carries, and only five percent of his runs went for 10 yards or more. As a rookie, that was the part of his game that made him dangerous: he could shake the first tackler and turn routine carries into chunk gains.
There were real reasons for the decline. Irving missed seven games because of shoulder and foot injuries and later had offseason shoulder surgery.
Tampa Bay’s offensive line never got settled either, with the starting five not taking a single snap together. Even with all that working against him, Irving still gave the Buccaneers value in the passing game, catching 30 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns in those 10 appearances.
And the Kenneth Gainwell move shouldn’t be read as a referendum on Irving. Tampa Bay brought in an experienced receiving back who can help trim Irving’s workload after the injuries, and Gainwell comes with real production of his own after putting up 1,023 yards from scrimmage for Pittsburgh in 2025.
If Irving gets healthier, if the line holds up, and if his yards per carry and yards after contact bounce back, then last season will look a lot more like an injury-riddled detour than a sign of things to come.
In Other News...
Buccaneers May Already Regret Letting Jack Pyburn Get Away
Jack Pyburn did enough in August to make the Buccaneers take notice, even if it did not keep him in Tampa Bay for long. The undrafted rookie flashed all preseason and finished with four sacks, tying for the most among edge defenders, before the Bucs waived him during final roster cuts and watched Kansas City move quickly to claim him for its 53-man roster.
For a team always hunting for young pass-rush help, that kind of departure can linger. Todd Bowles had already singled out Pyburns work ethic and production, which only sharpens the question of whether Tampa Bay gave up on him a little too early, or whether the Chiefs simply got there first and saw enough to make the gamble worthwhile. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Suddenly Have A Real Path Back To The Top
The NFC South does not look especially imposing heading into this season, and that has opened a lane for Tampa Bay to get back where it has spent plenty of time in recent years. ESPNs Dan Graziano sees the Buccaneers as a team that could reclaim the division, pointing to the kind of ingredients that often matter most in a crowded race: a quarterback with something to prove, better health, and a roster that has been reinforced on both sides of the ball.
Baker Mayfields motivation in a contract year sits at the center of that optimism, but it is not the only reason Tampa Bay is drawing notice. The Buccaneers have added talent on offense and defense, and if the health picture improves, they should have a real chance to separate themselves from what is expected to be a weak division. The bigger question is whether all of those pieces come together quickly enough to make the path back to the top look as clear as it does on paper. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Quarterback Battle Just Put New Pressure On Atlanta's Roster
Baker Mayfields situation in Tampa Bay remains one of the more interesting subplots of the offseason, especially with Todd Bowles noting the quarterbacks motivation even before a contract extension is finalized. For the Buccaneers, that kind of stability matters. Mayfield has already become the focal point of the offense, and Bowles comments only reinforce how central he is to what Tampa Bay wants to build heading into the next stretch of team planning.
Across the division, the Falcons are juggling a different kind of quarterback conversation, with general manager Ian Cunningham talking through the teams current situation and the roster moves that have come with it. The broader NFC South picture also includes Carolina, where Dan Morgan has been addressing roster commitments, injuries and practice squad decisions, a reminder that every team in the division is still sorting out the same basic question: who is ready now, and who still has more to prove before the picture settles? [Read more 🡒]