After having already been eaten alive by the injury bug, the last thing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers need is another key player to go down. That's starting to seem more and more like the case we continue to wait for word on Bucky Irving's status for Sunday.
Irving was injured in the Bucs' loss to Philly last Sunday, and while he was able to finish the game, he's still a question mark for Week 5. It appears that the injury occurred during the play in which Irving fumbled in the third quarter, but it's unclear what exactly the injury is.
Head coach Todd Bowles said earlier this week that Irving was getting an MRI and that he was among the players he was concerned about, but failed to elaborate. That's all we had heard about Bucky's status until NFL Network's Mike Garafolo gave Bucs fans an update they didn't really want to hear.
Latest Bucky Irving injury update is less than ideal for the Bucs
Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud noted that Bucky was seen at practice in a boot and crutches, which suggests he’s not going to play on Sunday against the Seahawks.
Bucs RB Bucky Irving was wearing a boot on his left foot and was using crutches. OLB Haason Reddick has a stinger Sunday but is at practice. So is DT Greg Gaines, who left with a pectoral injury. Still no Mike Evans, obviously. It’s a walk thru so tough to discern who is going.…
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) October 1, 2025
That came in thee heels of a report from Garafolo, who also credited NFL insider Ian Rapoport with the update, Irving is "gathering medical opinions", which doesn't sound ideal at all.
#Buccaneers RB Bucky Irving is still gathering medical opinions on what’s being termed an ankle and/or foot injury, sources tell me and @RapSheet. No one has ruled Irving out vs. the #Seahawks but he’s sore and his status is up in the air as the Bucs return to practice tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/3kTSbcqYfT
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 1, 2025
That's pretty all over the place in terms of being definitive on what Bucky's status is, but none of it sounds promising. Even if he plays, which is still on the table, he won't be anywhere near 100 percent and the question needs to be asked whether it's worth it for him to play and risk potentially missing more time than he otherwise might.
Bucs fans just went through that with Mike Evans, whose status was up in the air last week after a hamstring injury. The overwhelming consensus was that resting Evans was the right more to ensure he didn't make his injury worse and that could end up being the case with Bucky.
Just like with Evans, Tampa Bay has a pretty fantastic contingency plan in Rachaad White to lean on if it needs to. Not having Bucky in the offense changes things, but being able to insert a still dynamic player like White -- who is a a threat in the passing game -- helps take some of the sting off.
Tampa Bay has managed to march through the first portion of the season with a 3-1 record and is setup well to defend its NFC South crown. Not having Bucky for Week 5 against Seattle makes things tougher, but losing him for more than that makes getting back to the playoffs even harder.
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