Eye-popping moment yesterday at One Buc Palace.
Candid running backs coach Skip Peete took to the media studio podium and fielded questions from reporters. One was about the rise of Bucky Irving, last season’s superstar rookie running back.
Fans were screaming for Irving to start ahead of Rachaad White and get more touches.
Why didn’t that happen? There were multiple reasons, and Peete brought an off-the-radar one to light.
> “At the beginning, you know, I mean he wasn’t really in enough shape to play an entire game, or even three-quarters of a game,” Peete said of Irving. “So you had to monitor kind of how many snaps he took. But as the season went along I think he got in a little better shape.”
Remember when Irving was missing practices with a toe issue? Joe does. Head coach Todd Bowles, back in October, seemed to let his guard down for a moment and said Irving [would probably deal with the bad toe all season](https://www.joebucsfan.com/2024/10/get-used-to-it-bucky-irving-held-out-of-practice-today/).
That didn’t happen. Irving started practicing regularly and his workload increased.
Unreal, 1,122 rushing yards for Irving last season on just 207 carries — plus 47 catches. That’s damn special for a guy who was, as his coach painted him, not in prime shape.
How much better can Irving be this season?