The Bucs Need Even More From Rachaad White In 2024

Much of this was done through the draft when the Bucs drafted interior offensive linemen Graham Barton in the first round and guard Elijah Klein in the sixth round. They also signed Ben Bredeson and Sua Opeta to upgrade the interior offensive line. The running back room found some more help for White by drafting running back Bucky Irving in the fourth round.

Rachaad White had to do a lot of heavy lifting in 2023, which was his first full season as the starter. And there were surely some mixed results. White finished just 10 yards short of 1,000 rushing yards, but did have a career-best six rushing touchdowns and his 990 yards rushing was a career-high. White also shined brightest as a receiver, showing he’s a true three-down weapon in the Bucs’ offense with 64 catches for 549 yards and three TDs.

Where Can Rachaad White Become A Better Runner In 2024?

Yet the Bucs still want more out of Rachaad White in 2024.

In fact, Tampa Bay wants White to play more like Bucky Irving does.

“When he (Irving) accepts the handoff he bursts and accelerates through the hole and can make people miss in space,” Liam Coen said. “Rachaad, he has taken every detail that we’ve coached throughout this offseason and applied it. That is something that we’ve worked on and that we’ve been communicating to him, and really all the backs, is just that we are fast to and fast through [the hole].

“When we receive the handoff – we want to be shot out of a cannon – with obviously having visions and patience that goes along with it. That’s not something I really need to coach. He has been fantastic when it comes to the tracks, his responsibility, the landmark, being shot out of a cannon in some the run game that we have done so far in this phase.”

Running backs coach Skip Peete is in his second year coaching Rachaad White. And he saw another area where White can add more to his game this season.

“He’s got to run with more physicality in the run game, more authority,” Peete said. “He agreed. He did a good job last year, I thought he had a pretty good season but there’s areas that he can improve, areas that everybody can improve. He obviously got better as the season went on, it’s good to see that. You talk about young guys come into the league that have an opportunity to play early, they have some success but then your’e going to have downs too.

“You got to find ways to fight through that and continue to work on your craft. I think you can’t do it all at once, I think you kind of got to pick and choose one thing a day and try to master that. You go to the next thing and by the end of the week, hopefully you improved a little bit for that week. We talk about that all the time. I think he’s continuing to do that.”

Rachaad White has been a patient runner – and sometimes that has worked to his detriment. Coen’s new offense requires more speed and acceleration through hole in an instant.

Peete believe that White got better last year. There are just some small adjustments that White needs to make him – and the running game – better in 2024.

“I thought he did improve,” Peete said. “But I think early on his style was a little bit different in his mindset of more hesitation and then hitting the hole. Where in this scheme that we have, it’s more just set your track and hit the hole. The timing of the blocking as far as the timing with the back kind of meshes together, and that’s the most important thing that we’ve got to mastered. And that comes from everybody being on the same page and understanding exactly what we’re trying to get accomplished.”