Buccaneers Urged to Trade for Former 1st-Round RB at NFL Deadline

Getty Rashaad Penny, potential Buccaneers trade deadline target

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t have much of a running game and with the NFL trade deadline approaching on October 31, they’ve only got a couple of days to wade through the rumors and come up with a solution.

Maybe the solution is just to open things up a bit and get the running backs involved in the short passing game, as the Bucs did in Buffalo on Thursday night. In that game, starting running back Rachaad White had 39 yards rushing on just nine carries, but added 70 yards receiving on seven catches. That came after White had 65 yards receiving on six catches in Week 7.

But maybe the solution is to add another back. The folks at Bleacher Report are suggesting that tack this week—a trade for Eagles running back Rashaad Penny, the former first-round pick of the Seahawks who led the NFL in yads per carry in 2021, at 6.1 per game.

“The Tampa Bay Buccaneers should at least see whether they can pry Penny away from Philadelphia,” writer Kristopher Knox noted. “The 27-year-old has a significant injury history, but he’s averaged 5.7 yards per carry during his career when healthy.”

Buccaneers Could Help Run Game at NFL Trade Deadline

The Buccaneers still rank 30^th in the NFL in yards per carry, at 3.2, and have totaled just 545 yards rushing, which ranks 29^th. They’ve scored 121 points, which ranks 27^th in the league.

Penny would be a good option, if the Bucs could get him and keep him on the field—he has played just 19 games in the last four seasons. But, as B/R pointed out, The Athletic reported that the Eagles are not shopping Penny at the deadline. Not yet, at least.

That might be, in part, because they got Penny on the cheap (ahem).

“To win the NFC South in their first post-Tom Brady season, the Bucs need to find more balance on offense. Penny, who is playing on a one-year, $1.1 million deal, is the right target for a Tampa team with only $4.5 million in cap space,” Knox wrote.

Could ‘Going Heavy’ Help Bucs?

One non-NFL trade deadline option that was floated this week in Buccaneers media sessions was to beef up the offensive line a bit, by playing an extra tight end for blocking purposes. The Bucs have been fairly conservative offensively all season, so throwing another blocker in would not be a stretch.

“Going heavy is a good option that teams use at times,” offensive coordinator Dave Canales said. “I think the style of runs that we’re getting … our tight ends are doing what they’re supposed to do – they’re getting guys covered up. We’re not expecting Cade [Otton] or Ko [Kieft] or Payne [Durham] to really be those big mauler types of tight ends. I think there’s only maybe a couple – a handful – in the league that you can really talk about.

“The run schemes are really designed for them to just cover it up so the [running] backs can read it and create space. I think, across the board, it’s me, the rhythm and flow of when to call those runs, the styles of runs that we’re calling, and then it’s the guys continuing to improve fundamental skills and then also to finish – the attitude and the finish that we’re looking for going forward.”