With the expected release of veteran Leonard Fournette, Rachaad White, last year’s third-round pick, now sits atop the Bucs’ depth chart at running back. But that could change if Tampa Bay selects a running back like Texas’ Bijan Robinson in the 2023 NFL Draft.

It’s a deep class at running back this year, so the chances of the Bucs using a premium pick before the third round are quite slim. There will be several starting-caliber running backs to be had on Day 3. But what if Robinson, who is the clear-cut top back in this year’s draft, falls to the Bucs at No. 19? Would Tampa Bay be tempted to take him in the first round?

JC Cornell, founder of The Draft Network, encouraged the Bucs to pick Robinson in the first round, and White took note of that on Twitter.

Cornell tweeted: “They are picking 19th. Awkward draft position. You aren’t guaranteed hitting on a CB/OT/EDGE prospect. Drafting a star RB that can take over a game is a good move imo. The new RB coach would be phenomenal with Bijan. A little to early to call White a budding star.”

White responded on Twitter and suggested he could be a star running back with more carries.

As it turns out, Robinson did not meet with the Bucs at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine – either formally or informally – in Indianapolis. That doesn’t mean that the Bucs wouldn’t draft Robinson if he’s there at No. 19, but the fact that Tampa Bay didn’t even meet with him suggests that the team is not willing to spend its first-round pick on a running back – no matter how great he may be.

Rachaad White Said He Would Beat Out Bijan Robinson If The Bucs Draft Him

In an exclusive interview with Pewter Report, White indicated he wouldn’t flinch if the Bucs drafted the Texas star, but wasn’t encouraging the move because he doesn’t think it’s necessary.

Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“I don’t have no problem with Bijan,” White said. “The thing is, at the end of the day, what I have learned even though I’m young — [from] my agent and what people in my circle taught me — it’s a business, we all know that. Tampa Bay has to do what’s best for Tampa Bay. My coaches have to do what’s best for my coaches. Everybody has a little selfishness in them – you have to. Me, I’m selfless. You can draft Bijan, you can draft whoever, at the end of the day, I’m going to win that job, that’s just what I’ve always done.

“That’s what I always did with my track record, no matter what. No problem with Bijan or whoever Tampa drafts. Obviously you have to draft a guy, it’s the league. I don’t have any problem with that, the only problem I have is people saying, ‘We don’t know if he can be Kenneth Walker – if he could be a budding star.’ Kenneth and I are like close friends in real life, we talk a lot. I’m just saying if you give me 200 carries in a season – if you give me the opportunity and I don’t make anything out of it, then you can say we don’t know if he can be a budding star.”

White figures to get way more carries than the 129 carries he got last year as a rookie in the 2023 season as the expected starter. White was second on the team with 481 yards rushing and one touchdown, while Fournette led the Bucs with 189 carries for 668 yards and three touchdowns. White’s 3.7-yard average did lead Tampa Bay in 2022.

“When I only got [129] carries [last season], it’s hard to say somebody could be a budding star and live up to this when you’re not getting the same opportunity,” White said. “That’s what life is about. It’s about situational opportunities.”

Bijan Robinson Is The Top RB In The 2023 NFL Draft

Texas RB Bijan Robinson – Photo by: USA Today

Tampa Bay will be committed to running the ball more under new offensive coordinator Dave Canales, and Robinson is rated as the No. 4 overall prospect on Daniel Jeremiah’s big board on NFL.com. Pro Football Focus has Robinson as the 27th-rated overall prospect, but does not put a premium on the running back position due to the pass-first nature of the NFL.

Still, PFF has some glowing remarks about Robinson, saying, “Robinson is about as well-rounded a back as you’ll see in the draft. He’s one of the highest-floor players in the class.”

Robinson ran for 3,410 yards and 33 touchdowns in three seasons at Texas, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. The 6-foot, 215-pounder had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2021 and 2022, rushing for 1,580 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior last year. He also caught 60 passes for 805 yards and four touchdowns for the Longhorns, averaging an obscene 13.4 yards per catch.

Robinson did say he met with the Falcons, the Bucs’ division rival, which has a run-first offense under head coach Arthur Smith.