So far this season there have been two themes developing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, one more positive than the other.
Tampa Bay's offense has been electric, as it's already outpacing what was happening under Dave Canales last year. The fact that Liam Coen and Baker Mayfield have been able to to what they have is made even more impressive because so many injuries have started to pile up.
That's the flipside to the coin of positivity, and the injury bug is continuing to chew its way through Tampa Bay's roster ahead of a huge matchup against the New Orleans Saints. Two receivers were already ruled out over the weekend, with Trey Palmer and Kam Johnson sidelined, and Rachaad White's foot had him as doubtful heading into Sunday.
Latest Rachaad White injury update for Week 6 vs. Saints
As the week progressed there was growing doubt that White would play, something that was confirmed when the Bucs released their final inactives list. White was officially listed as out due to his foot injury, whice creates a huge spot for his backfield runningmate.
Even if White had been healthy, all signs were pointing toward Bucky Irving getting more playing time. Tampa Bay's rookie has been a revelation this season, pushing the rushing game forward in ways even the most optimistic fans wasn't entirely sure would happen.
Irving has been the perfect compliment to White, already racking up 247 yards and a touchdown while averaging 5.6 yards per carry. That's outrageous considering what the Bucs had been dealing with over the last two seasons; Irving is making a real run at taking the RB1 crown from White, which isn't as ridiculous a statement as it might have been a few months ago.
The best scenario for the offense is if White and Irving are both healthy and firing on all cylinders. We haven't really seen that yet this year, which is more exciting than it is frustrating. It gives us something to look forward to and Sunday will be a perfect sample size to see how Irving does in a huge spot.
He needs to help carry the offense—literally—and a big game against a heated rival will only further boost his stock.
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