The Bucky Irving saga just took a dramatic turn at the worst possible time for Tampa Bay. What was supposed to be a heavyweight Sunday Night Football showdown, Rams at 8–2, Bucs at 6–4, both leading their divisions, has now morphed into a mystery around one of the Bucs’ most explosive young weapons. Tampa desperately hoped to get Irving back for this Week 12 clash at SoFi Stadium, but Mike Florio’s unexpected on-air hint about “information beyond the injury report” has thrown a cloud over his return, sending fans into full-blown speculation mode.

That’s exactly why his role matters so much. The Rams aren’t a soft matchup up front; they’re hanging right around league-average in rushing yards allowed per game and have held a few teams under 4.0 yards per carry this season. The Bucs just ripped off 202 rushing yards in Buffalo behind Sean Tucker’s breakout, but Irving is the guy who was supposed to be the original mismatch piece, the back who can ping-pong between handoffs and being Baker Mayfield’s safety valve in the flat.

“I’m not so sure Bucky Irving is going to be back this weekend based upon something I heard when we were in Philadelphia. I’ll tell you off-air what I heard,” Florio told ex-NFLer Chris Simms on the November 20 episode of NFL on NBC. “I want to be careful, which just underscores the very real existence of inside information. It’s because it’s something that probably shouldn’t be out, but I don’t think he’s going to be back anytime soon. It definitely is more information than what’s available in the injury report.”

It sent fans into a frenzy. Everyone wondered what exactly happened to the explosive player. But we got the answer from Rick Stroud, the Bucs beat reporter for the Tampa Bay Times.

Part of the panic was just how long this has dragged on. Irving hasn’t played since Week 4, when a shoulder subluxation and a sprained foot shut him down. He was ruled out coming off the bye, then missed the Bills game too, even as Tampa’s offence dropped 32 points in a shootout loss. So for a lot of people, Sunday night in L.A. was quietly circled as the “okay, he should be back by now” moment, which is why Florio’s “anytime soon” comment hit a nerve.

“Bucky Irving needed some mental health support from what I can gather following his injury, and I’m told he’s “trending toward playing in the very near future,” It won’t be Sunday, however. Not sure I agree with Florio’s claim he doesn’t expect Irving Jr.’ anytime soon,” speculation,” Stroud wrote on X (previously Twitter).

It could be 100% true. Sometimes, players have struggled more with the mental aspect of injuries than the physical factors. Former Denver Broncos safety Nick Ferguson highlighted this when he underwent surgery to treat his injured knee. He revealed that the thought of the uncertainty about performing at the same level stressed him.

To recover well from his injury and get back to 100% level, he used dianetics, created in 1950 by L. Ron Hubbard and widely viewed as pseudoscience. The Bucs haven’t disclosed what’s going on behind the scenes. But they are also paying full attention to their running back.

Todd Bowles weighs Bucky Irving’s readiness as questions grow

On Wednesday, the first day of practice, the head coach, Todd Bowles, was asked about the running back’s readiness for the game. He did not give a direct reply. What he did say is that the staff is “ramping up” Irving’s reps in practice to test how that shoulder and foot hold up before the Rams game, and that they’ll know more after they get through a full week’s work. With the latest mixed report about his mental health, things are set to get complicated. A legend also echoed a similar sentiment.

The Bucs listed Bucky Irving down with shoulder and foot injuries on their injury report. But he had limited participation on both Wednesday and Thursday. There is no injury designation yet. It means the Bucs are keeping an eye on his health. In 4 games this season, he has 71 carries for 237 rushing yards with no scores. But the running back helped them in the receiving game, catching 100% of 19 targets for 193 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns.

Even when Irving is back, nothing about this backfield is going to be simple. Bowles has been consistent for over a year now: the Bucs will “go with the hot hand” and rotate all three backs, Irving, Sean Tucker, and Rachaad White, then ride whichever one catches fire. Against the Bills, that guy was Tucker, who dropped 106 rushing yards and three total touchdowns in a 202-yard team rushing day. So Irving isn’t just fighting his body and his mind here; he’s also walking back into a room where someone else just kicked the door down.

However, the Bucs legend Ronde Barber surprised everyone with his candid admission about Irving’s return timeline. He made it clear on his WFLA-TV show that Irving would not return for the Week 12 game. He also signalled similar issues, claiming, “Bucky’s got to get right with Bucky.”

The Bucs have lost two games in a row. So, they want to win against the Rams. But will Irving help his teammates? We’ll find out soon. Stay tuned for more!