Bucs OC Dave Canales called Ke'Shawn Vaughn his #2 RB. "He’s our two, and he’s a fantastic runner," Canales said on a recent podcast appearance. "Just quick feet in the hole, sturdy build. And he’s just got a real natural feel for it." Tampa signed RB Chase Edmonds to a 1-year, $1.2 million deal in free agency, but Vaughn will at least open training camp ahead of him on the depth chart. Vaughn has underwhelmed in limited opportunities through three NFL seasons, but any #2 RB is worth paying attention to -- especially a #2 RB behind an unproven starter in Rachaad White.
Buccaneers RB Rachaad White looks like he's in line for as many touches as he can handle this season. The team dumped Leonard Fournette in the offseason and signed only Chase Edmonds. Tampa Bay also didn't draft a RB, adding only undrafted free agents Sean Tucker and Ronnie Brown. So what's not to like about White? He wasn't good last year. Among 51 RBs who carried 90+ times, White ranked 46th in Pro Football Focus rushing grade, 41st in elusive rating and 45th in rush yards over expected per attempt. An O-line that ranked just 28th in Football Outsiders' adjusted line yards didn't help. That group could improve, with C Ryan Jensen back healthy and second-round rookie G Cody Mauch entering the mix. But that group doesn't look likely to be a strength. The QB switch should mean a higher rushing rate. The Bucs ranked last in the league in run rate each of the past two years. Expect that to change with Tom Brady gone. So White could be set for big touch volume, which would make him at least decent as a fantasy option, even if he remains inefficient. But it's also possible we get surprising production from some other member(s) of the backfield. And Tampa Bay could still add a RB. White makes plenty of sense low in RB2 territory in the 2023 RB rankings. Just don't reach for him too early.
RB Sean Tucker has signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent. We heard earlier this week that Tucker was flagged for a heart issue, which has seemingly been confirmed by him going undrafted. We’ll keep an eye on that situation, but this is at least a decent landing spot with Tampa’s RB corps consisting of Rachaad White, Chase Edmonds, and Ke’Shawn Vaughn. For a guy standing 5’9, and 207 pounds, Tucker plays like a track runner and isn’t afraid to confront potential tacklers in tight running lanes. Tucker’s effectiveness is a bit of a mixed bag, but his sophomore season at Syracuse in 2021 showed fantasy managers what he’s capable of at his best. Tucker led the ACC with 1,496 rushing yards that year, finishing 4th among all NCAA RBs with 44 runs of 10+ yards.
The Bucs signed RB Chase Edmonds to a one-year deal. It's for the veteran minimum, according to Fox Sports' Greg Auman, which means Edmonds will make about $1.1 million in 2023. The soon-to-be 27-year-old has a pair of 40+ catch seasons on his resume but has yet to top 116 carries or 592 rushing yards in a season. He split his 2022 between Miami and Denver, averaging just 3.6 yards per carry and ranking 59th among 67 qualifying RBs in Pro Football Focus' rushing grades. Edmonds looks like just an insurance policy on RB Rachaad White, who figures to get first crack at Tampa's lead job this season.
The Bucs plan to release RB Leonard Fournette on March 15, the first day of the new league year, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. The move will save the rebuilding Bucs $3.47 million against the 2023 salary cap. Fournette remained reliable in the passing game last year, hauling in 73 of 83 targets for 523 yards (7.2 YPC). But he mustered just 3.5 yards per carry and ranked bottom 4 among 51 qualifiers in both Pro Football Focus' Elusive Rating and NFL Next Gen Stats' Rush Yards Over Expected Per Attempt. The 28-year-old figures to land a committee job on the open market and isn't an exciting pick in early best-ball drafts. The Bucs, meanwhile, are left with RB Rachaad White atop the depth chart for now. He caught 50 balls as a rookie last year but averaged just 5.8 yards per catch. White was only a little better than Fournette on the ground, averaging 3.7 yards per carry while ranking 41st in Elusive Rating and 45th in Rush Yards Over Expected Per Attempt. We'll see what else the Bucs add to the backfield this offseason.
The Bucs are hiring Dave Canales as their new OC. The 41-year-old has spent the past 13 seasons working under Pete Carroll, first at USC and then with Seattle. Canales most recently served as Seahawks QBs coach, helping QB Geno Smith to a career year. But Canales' only experience as an offensive coordinator came at Carson High School in California in 2004 and 2005. He's a total wild card as we start to project what this Bucs offense will look like in 2023. We're also, of course, still waiting to see what Tampa does at QB. Kyle Trask is the only QB currently on the roster.
Buccaneers RB Rachaad White led the team in rushing with 41 yards on 7 attempts in Monday’s Wild Card loss vs. the Cowboys. Teammate RB Leonard Fournette struggled mightily, tallying a mere 11 yards on 5 carries. White added some value as a receiver with 4 catches on 6 targets and 36 yards, whereas Fournette only managed 1 catch for 8 yards. The Cowboys’ defense took the life out of the Bucs’ rushing attack. The combined 52 rushing yards are the lowest total the Buccaneers’ offense has produced since Week 10 vs. the Seahawks in Munich. Looking ahead to 2023, the Buccaneers have an out in Fournette’s contract that would only incur a $1.5 million cap hit if they choose to move on this offseason. Should upcoming free agent QB Tom Brady move onto another team or retire, don’t be surprised to see Fournette hit the free agent market too. There's a window for the rookie White to seize a larger role in the future.
Buccaneers RB Leonard Fournette dominated the backfield work in Sunday night's OT win over the Cardinals. He carried 20 times for 72 yards, vs. just 7-36 rushing for RB Rachaad White. Fournette also caught a team-high 9 passes for a team-high 90 yards, tying WR Chris Godwin for the target lead at 10. White caught all 4 of his targets for 17 yards, including the team's lone offensive TD. Fournette played 20 more snaps than White and will be the better bet among Bucs RBs for a Week 17 home date with the Panthers.
Buccaneers RB Leonard Fournette carried the ball 11 times for 44 yards on top of hauling in 4 receptions for 30 yards in Sunday's loss to the Bengals. Rookie Rachaad White split the workload with Fournette in Week 15, logging 11 carries for 38 yards and a single catch for 5 yards. Neither Fournette nor White had particularly effective fantasy games as the Buccanners offense fell apart in the second half. However, managers should feel good about a Week 16 showdown against a Cardinals defense that ranks 6th in adjusted fantasy points allowed to RBs this season. Both Bucs backs should be in RB2/flex consideration next week, with the edge going to Fournette.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that Buccaneers RB Leonard Fournette (foot) is expected to play today against the 49ers. Expect another backfield split between Fournette and Rachaad White.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette (foot) is questionable for this weekend’s game vs. the 49ers. He was added to the injury report and limited on Thursday and then did not practice on Friday. HC Todd Bowles “did not express significant concern” about Fournette on Friday, though, according to ESPN’s Jenna Laine. We’ll look for further updates on his status but won’t get Tampa’s inactives until around 3 pm ET on Sunday. Fournette’s absence would turn Rachaad White into a borderline RB1, even in a tough matchup.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette rushed 10 times for 49 yards in a Week 13 matchup vs. New Orleans. He added 6 catches (on 7 targets) for 32 yards. Rachaad White actually out-targeted him by 1, although the veteran held the edge in route rate (59% vs. 37%). White also scored the game-winning TD on a do-or-die 3rd-down catch. There’s likely room for both guys to be weekly PPR starters going forward, especially with Tom Brady reluctant to take deep shots. Next up is a tough 49ers pass rush that might lead to another busy day for Tampa RBs in the passing game.
Bucs QB Tom Brady completed 36 of 54 passes for 281 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT in a comeback win over New Orleans. Brady was on his way to a true dud until late in the 4th, when both scores surfaced. He hit Cade Otton — and later Rachaad White — to seal the comeback victory. Volume continues to hold up Brady, who now leads the league with 524 attempts. He’ll be more of a QB2 this week against San Francisco.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette (hip) is active for tonight's game vs. the Saints. He was listed as questionable but put in a full week of practice, so we're not expecting the hip to be an issue. We'll see how Tampa splits work between Fournette and rookie Rachaad White.
The Buccaneers expect RB Leonard Fournette (hip) to play through his questionable tag for tonight's game against the Saints. That will likely return him to a backfield split with rookie RB Rachaad White, who led the way in the Week 12 game Fournette missed. Exactly what that split will look like is impossible to know. White saw elevated playing time in Week 10 -- before Tampa Bay's bye -- but Fournette left early with the injury. Both are in play for Week 13 fantasy football lineups and carry upside.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette (hip) is listed as questionable for Monday night's game vs. the Saints. He put in a full week of practice, so it'd be surprising if he didn't play. But the late kickoff adds a little risk to using him in fantasy lineups. We'll see if we get an update on Fournette on Sunday morning.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette (hip) put in another full practice on Friday. He remains on track to return for Monday night's game vs. the Saints.
Bucs RB Leonard Fournette (hip) was a full participant in Thursday's practice. That should put him in line to return for Monday night's game vs. the Saints. The question now becomes how snaps and touches will be divvied between Fournette and rookie Rachaad White. In Fournette's last game, White got the start, but Fournette tallied 14 carries and 1 target to White’s 11 carries and 0 targets before exiting with that hip injury.
Buccaneers RB Rachaad White caught all 9 of his targets for 45 yards in Sunday's OT loss at Cleveland. He added 64 rushing yards on 14 carries, controlling the backfield work with Leonard Fournette (hip) out. Ke'Shawn Vaughn claimed the only other 4 RB carries, and no other Bucs RB drew a target. The team managed just 2 offensive TDs, on passes to Chris Godwin and Ko Kieft. We'll see about Fournette's status for Week 13.
The Buccaneers have downgraded RB Leonard Fournette (hip) to out for Sunday's game against the Browns. He had already been deemed doubtful, so we moved Rachaad White up the Week 12 fantasy football rankings Friday in anticipation of Fournette not playing. Tampa Bay has also activated RB Giovani Bernard. We'll see what kind of role he can carve out, but we're not worried about Bernard's impact on White's numbers.
Search
