Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported on Wednesday that Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving was wearing a walking boot on his left foot while on crutches during the team’s midweek walkthrough practice. ESPN’s Adam Schefter also specified that the injury is a foot strain and his status for their Week 5 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks this weekend is in up in the air.
What Bucky Irving’s foot injury means for fantasy football in Week 5
Bucs RB Bucky Irving is dealing with a foot injury ahead of Week 5. We’ll take a look at the fantasy impact.
Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Irving sustained the injury in the first half of last Sunday’s 31-25 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but he was able to finish the contest. The second-year back had an explosive day with 63 rushing yards, 102 receiving yards, and a touchdown, but his third-quarter fumble proved costly in the Bucs’ efforts to come back against the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Tampa Bay has already been ravaged by injuries to key players through the first month of the season and Irving is the latest playmaker to get bitten by the injury bug. Veteran wide receiver Mike Evans is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury and this came a week after starting defensive tackle Calijah Kancey was lost for the season with a torn pec. The team did get some much needed reinforcements last Sunday with both Chris Godwin and Tristan Wirfs making their season debuts, but Irving potentially missing time just continues the revolving door for the 3-1 squad.
Fantasy Football Impact
Irving is currently a top-10 fantasy running back in all scoring formats, so his potential absence will impact the scores of fantasy managers who selected him as their No. 1 back in their respective drafts. The second-year star has posted 237 rushing yards on the ground through four games, but his skills as a pass-catcher has elevated him into the elite tier of fantasy backs. He currently trails only Christian McCaffrey and Bijan Robinson in receiving among tailbacks, hauling in 19 receptions for 193 yards and two touchdowns on the year.
If he were to miss Sunday’s road game at Seattle, backup Rachaad White will step in as the starter, a role he held prior to the franchise drafting Irving in 2024. The four-year veteran got plenty of work through the first month of the season with 23 carries for 108 yards on the ground and eight receptions for 34 yards through the air, making him a top-45 fantasy back heading into Week 5. Similar to the starter, White has also proven to be an effective receiving option out of the backfield, so offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard can simply plug him into the gameplan without altering too much.
White is rostered in 48.4% of fantasy leagues at the moment, so it’s a virtual coin flip over whether or not he’ll be available on your league’s waiver wire if you’re directly looking for Irving’s replacement. Third-string tailback Sean Tucker should also get some snaps as the backup and he should be readily available with a rostership of just 2.7%. Irving managers who are pressed for other options could scour the waiver wire this week for backs like Woody Marks of the Texans or Kendre Miller of the Saints.
