Getty Rumors about who will be the next quarterback of Bruce Arians' Buccaneers are heating up.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians couldn’t care less about Fantasy Football rankings. He plans to have running backs Ronald Jones II and Leonard Fournette split carries again.
In other words, neither Jones nor Fournette will pile up points for Fantasy Football players like a feature back can do.
“I know fantasy doesn’t like that, but those two guys … I mean, RoJo is one of the best runners I’ve been around. Lenny had that great run in the playoffs,” Arians told the media June 10 per Buccaneers.com’s Scott Smith. “He showed what they drafted him for in the top 5. So we’re blessed to have this group of backs, with Ke’Shawn (Vaughn) and Gio (Bernard). It’s a hell of a group.”
Arians wouldn’t name a starting running back at the end of minicamp, which wrapped up June 10. He plans to do that for training camp instead with Jones and Fournette as the front runners.
“Both those guys are starters in my mind,” Arians said per Smith. “Whoever goes out first doesn’t really matter to me. But that will be determined in (training) camp.”
It echoes what Arians said last month the Pewter Report podcast to
“Of all the positions, it’s probably the one where those two guys will compete,” Arians said on the podcast. “But they’re both gonna play. They’re so talented and they both bring so much to the table. Hopefully, if they’re both healthy, they are splitting time.”
In 2020, Jones started off shouldering the load with 978 yards and seven touchdowns, but injuries hindered him down the stretch and in the postseason. That’s when Fournette took off after mustering 367 yards and six touchdowns in the regular season. He amassed 300 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the playoffs plus 18 receptions for 148 yards and a touchdown, which earned him the nicknames “Playoff Lenny” and “Super Bowl Lenny.”
Tampa can also get production from Vaughn and Bernard. Vaughn averaged 4.2 yards per carry and 6.8 yards per reception in 2020. Bernard gained 3.4 yards per carry and 7.6 yards per catch with the Cincinnati Bengals last year before joining the Bucs.
“Ke’Shawn’s made a nice move but he has to be a better special teams player right now because of what’s in front of him,” Arians said per Smith. “But I have all the confidence in the world in him as a runner and a receiver. And Gio has added a nice presence back there.”
Arians wasn’t happy with Vaughn the week before during voluntary organized team activities when the young back chose quarterback Tom Brady’s informal workout instead. The coach said he hoped Vaughn would “make a better decision” per The Athletic’s Greg Auman.
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Jones vs. Fournette
Arians believes the Jones-Fournette competition will be one of the best position battles at training camp next month.
“They’re so talented and they both bring so much to the table,” Arians said in an interview on the Pewter Report podcast in May.
Fournette originally came into the league as a No. 4 draft pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2017 draft from LSU, and he burst on the scene, helping the Jaguars reach the AFC title game. Fournette’s success in Jacksonville didn’t last as the team released him right before the 2020 season. The Bucs picked him in time for Week 1.
Jones joined the Bucs as a second-round pick in 2018 from USC. He only carried the ball 23 times as a rookie, but he took off in 2019 as the primary back with 724 yards and six touchdowns in a pass-heavy offense.
Bernard Brings Third-Down Relief
Tampa adding Bernard not only made the running back room deeper, but it brings in reliable third-down back as Arians told Pewter Report last month.
“He’s an excellent receiver, but he’s a hell of a protector and he’s extremely smart,” Arians said on the podcast. “You don’t see any blitzers coming through that weren’t supposed to be getting to the quarterback with [Bernard]. He’s a bright guy and he can really still play.”