Todd Bowles has been a confusing head coach in some ways.
Bowles says he believes in fighting to the finish. That’s why Bowles leaves starters in games when, in Joe’s opinion, they shouldn’t be on the damn field. See 2024 when Antoine Winfield and Chris Godwin each suffered major injuries.
But Bowles also has passed on being aggressive at times to win games. See trips to Cleveland, Detroit and Kansas City over the past three years.
So Joe has mixed feelings when it comes to chatter at One Buc Palace surrounding keeping a pitch count on Bucky Irving and making sure he stays fresh as the Bucs’ bellcow running back. Last year, Irving had 207 carries, plus 47 catches.
Yeah, Irving is small, but he’s significantly bigger than Warrick Dunn, the former Bucs great who moved on to Atlanta and had back-to-back seasons of 280-plus carries. One of those Dunn seasons delivered 1,416 yards (2005), the other had 1,140 yards (2006). And Dunn got those accomplished _after_ he turned 30.
Do the Bucs really need to be careful with Irving before clinching this season’s NFC South crown? For what exactly would they be saving him?
Bucky turns 23 in August. The Bucs are in win-now mode.
Todd Bowles’ buddy Pat Kirwan, the former Bucs scout, Jets linebackers coach and Jets personnel chief, is confident Irving bumps his workload up from 207 carries last year to 300 in 2024,
“You don’t have to overburden Bucky, but he’s going to end up at 300 carries this year,” Kirwan said on SiriusXM NFL Radio during a breakdown of NFC South running backs.
Kirwan marveled at how much Irving accomplished last season while taking only 45 percent of the Bucs’ offensive snaps.
Rachaad White was at 51 percent. And Kirwan loved how White and Irving combined for 98 receptions.
Still, he gave Bucs running backs the same overall grade as Atlanta’s backs, led by Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. Joe found that offensive, but whatever.
Managing a running back’s carries is an art form. Hopefully, Bowles proves he has the right feel for that this season with Irving, a task requiring open communication from the player, the medical staff and good coaching instincts.
If Bowles is going to try to preserve players for the postseason, Joe would much rather see Lavonte David stop playing 97 percent of the defensive snaps than putting a tight leash on Irving. Or stop letting Baker Mayfield take unnecessary hits in meaningless end-of-game situations.
**Ira Kaufman Talks Offensive Coaches, Eye-Opening QB Coach Emphasis, Todd Bowles Getting Personal, Tush Push Contradiction, Bucky Irving Load, And More**