Sean

Tucker

This quote comes from Irving’s annual youth football camp, which he put on this weekend. The Bucs’ RB1 was still dealing with the effects of offseason shoulder surgery after he played through a shoulder injury last season. He missed some time during OTAs but was able to get on the field in some capacity, and with the pads set to come on in a few days, this is great news for Irving ahead of camp. There has been some talk about the Buccaneers possibly taking a committee approach to its running back room this season after the team added Kenneth Gainwell to the mix and still has Sean Tucker in the mix. Reports out of camp will be worth monitoring as we look to get a sense of how the touch distribution could shape up at the start of the season, but Irving being healthy and putting last season’s injury issues behind him will go a long way in helping his fantasy value this season.

Reports from mid-May indicated that the Buccaneers might use a running back committee, including Gainwell and incumbent RBs Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker. It seems as though a two-player backfield may be taking shape, with Irving slated for 1A duties ahead of Gainwell. Sources tell Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds that Gainwell “has quickly picked up” OC Zac Robinson’s playbook and is excelling as a receiver out of the backfield. A split backfield could be in play this season.

Buried in an article comparing Bucs RBs Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell, Stroud notes that RB3 Sean Tucker “morphed into the Bucs’ short-yardage and goal-line specialist a year ago and led the club with seven rushing touchdowns.” Many teams employ two-player backfields. Stretching it to three makes things tough for fantasy purposes. Stroud does not definitively state that Tucker will again operate as the short-yardage and goal-line specialist, but he shares that tidbit just before forecasting a balanced approach. Tucker’s role in the rotation must be monitored closely this spring and summer — not just for his fantasy value, but for Irving and Gainwell’s as well.

It was the right-of-first-refusal tender. Apparently the free agent market was not kind to Tucker. He’ll enter the year third on Tampa’s depth chart at running back behind Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell, but could remain a thorn in Irving’s fantasy upside if he retains a sizeable red zone role under new OC Zac Robinson.

It would be a one-year, $3.52 million deal if he signs. But it’s a reversal of course from Jeremy Fowler’s report last week that Tucker would be let go. Perhaps the Buccaneers are trying to extract some value, or perhaps noise of a contract for Tucker became known and they reversed course. He can shop this offer around and try to beat it, and we expect him to. Tucker figures to remain third in the Buccaneers RB room pecking order after Kenneth Gainwell signed on this offseason, assuming he stays in Tampa Bay, that is.

Tucker was set to be a restricted free agent, but the Buccaneers declined to give him a $3.5 million tender. The 24-year-old will now hit free agency after two seasons of showing flashes of promise in a crowded backfield. Tucker saw limited opportunities behind Rachaad White and Bucky Irving, but developed into a short-yardage back in 2025. Fantasy managers got big games out of him twice. Once with 17 touches for 192 yards and two touchdowns against the Saints in 2024, and again with 21 touches for 140 yards and three touchdowns against the Bills in 2025. Tucker will generate interest from teams looking to add a bruising back to their committee in 2026.

Well that’s not very good. Tucker couldn’t find solid footing in the rainy Tampa Bay conditions, and ends what was a solid — all things considered — 2025 campaign on a down note. The former Syracuse tailback could be worth monitoring if he changes organizations next year as a restricted free agent. He also could play in a playoff game next week if the Saints beat the Falcons.

White only saw four touches for 17 total yards on the day, but he most notably saw a sizeable chunk of backfield snaps against the Dolphins. He saw 32 snaps to Bucky Irving’s 36 snaps in a pass-favorable game script. Sean Tucker notably had just four snaps, rushing two times for eight yards and failing to catch his only target of the day. Irving is the lead back for the Bucs while White is the passing-down back and Tucker is the short-yardage, goal-line back. It continues to be a frustrating split for fantasy purposes and Irving is the best bet out of the backfield for Week 18 against the Panthers.

Tucker had almost exclusively a red zone role for the Bucs in Week 16. He saw just five snaps, but got four carries. Tucker ran a few times at the goal line, punching one of them in for a one-yard score. The Buccaneers’ running back rotation currently sees Bucky Irving as the primary back, White in for some passing-down usage, and Tucker as the red zone back, making things frustrating for fantasy managers. Tucker is a touchdown-dependent FLEX play for Week 17 against the Dolphins.

Tucker got the scoring started by volturing a touchdown early in the contest. That makes back-to-back games with a trip to paydirt, but it’s also three straight games he hasn’t cleared 30 yards. He’s as touchdown-dependent as you’ll find in the league right now, in terms of offering potential fantasy value. It’s potentially worth noting that Tucker did receive more carries than Rachaad White, as White carried the rock just one time for 20 yards in the loss.