Luther Burden vs Bucky Irving

“This is a reference to a song by The Rolling Stones. It also highlights how Luther Burden III is going to be an absolute beast this season. Don’t be afraid, buy into the hype. He’s a stud in a great situation.”

“08) – Luther Burden (WR, CHI) For the first and only time in this mock draft, Round 5 saw all three Ballers take a player at the same position.”

“Luther Burden III (WR – CHI) | ECR: WR24/ADP: 49 Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of optimism surrounding Luther Burden III and this entire Bears offense.”

“Like most fantasy football enthusiasts, count me among the stans. I am a fan of Burden’s game. I think he is great, but the LTV absolutely loves Burden.”

“Burden averaged 13.9 YPC, which is high when considering his low aDOT. That's attributable to the fact that Burden was a YAC machine in 2025, averaging 7.1 YAC per reception, which ranked 3rd in the NFL among WRs.”

“Burden finished 2025 with a paltry 12.8% target share on the season. This number obviously grew throughout the season, as his snap share increased, but that's still an uninspiring number. Better, though, were his Team Reception % (16%), Team Receiving Yards % (19%), and team WR Points % (26.9%), which shows how efficient Burden was when targeted.”

“From Weeks 10-18, Burden posted a WR5 overall finish with 2.67 YPRR. Burden was highly efficient on a per-route basis, and extrapolating that efficiency across a 17-game season in a full-time role would lock him into a top-12 finish at his position.”

“Rookie WR Luther Burden III started off slow but stepped up when it counted – in the playoffs. He was incredibly efficient with the ball, averaging 2.69 yards per route run, but he only earned a 13% target share on the season.”

“With D.J. Moore now in Buffalo, the table is set for Burden to take on a much larger role. If he builds on a rookie season in which he ranked third in yards per route run (2.79), Burden's value will shoot up higher than a reloadable mortar.”

“Burden lit up the 49ers in Week 17, racking up eight receptions for 138 yards and a touchdown. Those numbers made him the overall WR1 during fantasy championship week.”

“Luther Burden's numbers look incredible but he ran such a low percentage of the team's routes (RT %) that a 2026 leap needs to be contextualized with a new role in the Chicago offense.”

“Burden's Mid-Round 4 ADP is objectively one of the slappiest ADPs in the history of Best Ball. We're talking about a player with 652 career receiving yards being drafted ahead of the likes of Mike Evans and Davante Adams — not to mention two more established pass catchers on his own team. The conviction behind Burden despite stiff competition is driven by a strong college production profile and an elite year 1 YPRR in a part-time role.”

“It’s odd that so many people are forgetting just how good Irving was over a fairly large sample size of games over the second half of his rookie season. Buy the dip.”

“8 | Diff: +3 Over the last two seasons, with Bucky Irving in town, Rachaad White was a more effective per-touch player, but with Irving out of the lineup last year, he proved again that he can carry the mail (although while being horribly inefficient).”

“Bucky Irving ‘s rookie season was as impressive as they come, considering his draft capital (125th overall).”

“Bucky Irving was the only top-12 drafted RB to miss more than two games.”

“Top-12 Drafted RBs in 2025 RB 2025 ADP 2024 Finish 2025 Games Played Bijan Robinson RB1 RB3 17 Saquon Barkley RB2 RB13 16 Jahmyr Gibbs RB3 RB4 17 Christian McCaffrey RB4 RB1 17 Derrick Henry RB5 RB7 17 Ashton Jeanty RB6 RB12 17 Josh Jacobs RB7 RB15 15 De’Von Achane RB8 RB6 16 Jonathan Taylor RB9 RB2 17 Bucky Irving RB10 RB33 10 Chase Brown RB11 RB8 17 Kyren Williams RB12 RB9 17 2025 RB Health Last season, nine out of 12 top RBs drafted finished as an RB1, resulting in a mostly chalky season at the top for RBs.”

“Bucky Irving checks all the boxes when it comes to identifying a true “buy low” player.”

“After finishing his rookie season as the RB13, averaging 14.4 PPR fantasy points per game, Bucky Irving regressed last year and struggled to stay healthy, missing seven contests. Furthermore, Irving had offseason shoulder surgery and might not be fully ready for training camp.”

“Irving finished dead last in that metric among qualifying running backs last season, which sounds damning, but he ranked sixth in the same metric in 2024. The difference is the offensive line: Tampa Bay’s line ranked second in adjusted line yards during Irving’s rookie season and collapsed to 22nd last year due to injuries.”

“Even before the injury that sidelined him, Irving averaged just 3.3 yards per carry while ranking 32nd in explosive yards, 45th in missed tackles forced per attempt and 33rd in runs for first downs at his position. With Tampa Bay deploying a full rotation of backs, it feels extremely hard to replicate.”

“Bucky Irving is a favorite draft target in the fifth round based on ADP.”

“With his second season being muddied with injuries and mental well-being issues, he enters his third season as a true fantasy question mark. This offseason, the Buccaneers gave Kenneth Gainwell a substantial contract and also brought back Sean Tucker. If both of these backs stick to their respective roles, we are looking at an early-down back in Irving who will be limited.”

“Who would have thought that the best back in the class by far was the sixth one selected on draft day? Taken with the 125th pick by the Buccaneers, Bucky Irving's hard-nosed running for a back his size won over fantasy managers.”