Bucky Irving has never been a man of many words. The Bucs running back prefers to let his play do the talking.

But after Tampa Bay’s 16-0 shutout win over the Falcons, Irving had plenty to say about the offense’s record-setting day on the ground.

With No. 7 leading the charge, the Bucs set a single-game franchise rushing record. Yet Irving wasn’t interested in celebrating the historic achievement. Instead, his focus had already shifted to a return to Chicago to face the Bears on Sunday night.

Bucky Irving Enjoyed Setting The Tone With The Bucs Run Game

The Bucs dominated on the ground, running the football an unfathomable 56 times compared to just three passing attempts. The absurd run/pass split was the biggest talking point from Sunday’s game, as Tampa Bay became the first NFL team since 1974 to win without completing a pass.

In total, Tampa Bay had 324 rushing yards, with Bucky Irving finishing the game with 27 carries for 170 yards. Irving didn’t have much to say about the game entering the team’s record books, though.

“I don’t really care about records; I care about winning,” Irving said. “All I [have] to say is, nobody cares, we have to do it again [and] move on [to the next game].”

This is the right mindset to have with the team sitting at 3-5. As head coach Todd Bowles said after the game, they still have some digging to do. The Bucs are playing like an old-school, smashmouth team from over half a century ago – and it’s working.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

Following Sunday’s dominant performance at Raymond James Stadium, the Bucs now boast the NFL’s best rushing attack. Their defense has complemented that success, allowing Tampa Bay to dictate the tempo and control the time of possession on the ground.

“It’s just [about] being able to come out and know the [team’s] identity; we want to start with running the football,” Irving said. “We want to set the tone. Every game is not going to be like that. [There are] going to be games where our receivers are going off and we’ve got good looks in the passing game, but for the past two games, we’ve been gassing it in the run game. Like I said, our coach is putting us in the right positions to have success, and we’re going to lean on whatever they call.”

Plenty of players made Irving and fellow running back Kenny Gainwell’s success possible. Offensive coordinator Zac Robinson has deployed heavier personnel packages in recent weeks with greater success, and it helps when the offensive line is generating impact plays and they have a trio of tight ends laying guys out, as seen here with this nasty block from rookie Bauer Sharp.

Bucky Irving Embraces The Hard Road Ahead

While Zac Robinson discussed last week how the rain could potentially affect his offensive gameplan on Sunday, Bucky Irving wasn’t concerned. Irving is far from being a meteorologist; he doesn’t even check the weather.

He just goes out there and plays ball – no matter the conditions.

“I’m not going to lie to you – I don’t know the last time I checked the weather for a football game,” Irving said. “We’re going to have to play in it anyway, that’s how I think about it. Rain, snow, muddy – you’re going to have to play in it anyway… you wake up on Sunday, it’s raining, nobody is going to come and save you, unless it’s lightning though, then they’ll save you [laughs]. It’s just being able to know we went out there and executed at a high level. Now we just [have] to put this game to bed and move on.”

It will also be a homecoming for Irving, who grew up on Chicago’s South Side and starred at Hillcrest High School before eventually making his way to the NFL.

Irving is no stranger to adversity. The challenges he faced growing up helped shape the mentality he carries today, and it is a mentality that has served him well as the Bucs have navigated their own struggles this season.

He has taken the hard road before.

In fact, he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“The past two years that I’ve been here, we started off smoking hot and towards the back end of the season, we’d kind of tumble,” Irving said. “Just being able to have some adversity [early] – life is about adversity. If you don’t go through [anything], if you want everything handed to you… I wouldn’t want it [any other] way. I want it hard because that’s how I had to get it my whole life.

Bucs WR Tez Johnson and RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“Just being able to know things are not going to be handed to you. [There are] 32 football teams that are pretty good. Everybody [has] the same goal, everybody wants to get to the Super Bowl, everybody wants to win, but what are you willing to sacrifice to get to that? Everything [isn’t] going to be perfect all the time. Just being able to know that we [had] some adversity early on and just being able to stay on the course, keep it going and trust our coaches to put us in the right position to win every week.”

The Bucs still have plenty of ground to make up after their slow start. But with their rushing attack finding its stride and Bucky Irving leading the way, they are beginning to show signs of turning things around.

For Irving, Sunday’s record-setting performance is already in the rearview mirror. He is not interested in celebrating what the Bucs accomplished against Atlanta. He is more concerned with proving they can do it again when he returns to Chicago on Sunday night.