Every player wants to ball out on the Bucs this season, especially the team’s 2022 draft picks.
Right tackle Luke Goedeke, tight end Cade Otton, and cornerback Zyon McCollum have all emerged as starters and are entering pivotal contract years seeking their first big-money contract next offseason.
While fellow 2022 draftee running back Rachaad White ceded his starting job to Bucky Irving in 2024, he similarly aspires to have a big year. White discussed how he is approaching a pivotal 2025 season with RG’s DJ Siddiqi.
Rachaad White Ready To Prove His Worth And “Let The Chips Fall Where They May”
Rachaad White may have lost the featured back job title and the touches that came with it last season, but that did not stop him from having a productive year. White posted a career-high efficiency running the football (4.3 yards per carry), finishing with 144 carries for 613 rushing yards. He also continued to assert himself as one of the best receiving backs in the league, hauling in 51 receptions for 393 receiving yards.
His workload led to him posting 1,006 scrimmage yards and adding nine touchdowns.
Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photo by: USA Today
Although there were rumors of White being traded earlier this offseason, he still provides plenty of value in the Bucs’ running back room going forward. What kind of mindset does he have as he enters this season?
An attacking one.
“I think my biggest thing is to attack every day,” White said in his interview with RG. “Show them who I am. At the end of the day, you can only control what you can control. You have to go out there and prove it every day. I look at that in all walks of life, so I’m just going out with my mindset, just attack every day, show them who I am, and let the chips fall where they may.”
That will again be meaning being the backup to Irving, however; expect White to remain involved within a high-scoring offense that has quickly become predicated on a successful run game. He had ten games with ten or more carries last season, with six games having five or more receptions. He will get his touches one way or the other and will attempt to make the most of them in a platform year.
Rachaad White And Bucky Irving Are The “Bad Boys” Of Bucs’ Backfield
Bad Boys is one of my favorite movie series of all-time.
Will Smith (Mike Lowrey) and Martin Lawrence (Marcus Burnett) tag team as Miami police detectives solving high-level cases as best friends and encountering their fair share of trouble along the way. Their friendship makes it entertaining and allows them to get them job done and the cases solved.
Rachaad White and Bucky Irving are no different.
Bucs RBs Rachaad White and Bucky Irving – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
White disclosed that they have the same nickname, inspired by the films to provide just as much action on the football field.
“We got our Bad Boys handshake and things like that that we do,” White said. “That’s our big name for ourselves. We call each other Bad Boys, for sure. It’s been amazing, our relationship is great.”
It says a lot about their relationship that they are so close. From day one, the now elder statesman of the running back room respected how the rookie came in ready to get after it last year. Irving was often the first player in the facility, and that mentality of doing what it takes to win is something they have in common.
“How he came into work, I respected that out of the gate and I always talk to him,” White added. “We got a lot of good things going for one another. We’re really passionate, we care about one another. We’re just trying to win at the end of the day, and we’re both just trying to stay fresh and trying to stay healthy. That’s what we do very well at and understand that we both bring different aspects to the game.”
One can debate who is Lowrey and Burnett, but between White and Irving, there is no ego.
Bucs RBs Rachaad White and Bucky Irving – Photo by: USA Today
Instead, they are focused on the mission of supporting the offense however they can and executing when the other needs a breather. There is always the threat they share the field together in the “Pony Package,” which gave opposing defenses fits when former offensive coordinator Liam Coen dialed it up.
“We know what we both bring to the table, but me and him, we’re not one of them egos and pride backfield,” White said. “We like to give credit where credit is due. A lot of things have transpired with the rushing attack. It’s a lot of things that go into it. Me and him, we like to give our whole line a lot of credit. We feel like we got a great O-line and we all got better throughout the year together in unison.”
Rachaad White is aiming to have a big year, but he will also be the biggest supporter to Bucky Irving. Together, they will be looking to be the “Bad Boys” of the NFL.
