Who Should I Start? Xavier Worthy or Bucky Irving

Friday, August 1, 2:07 PM

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (head) was not diagnosed with a concussion and has been cleared by NFL and team doctors, according to Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. Worthy left practice on Tuesday with a head injury, but he appears to have avoided significant missed time. The second-year wide receiver is in line for a key role in Kansas City's offense, especially with fellow wideout Rashee Rice likely facing an early-season suspension. As a rookie in 2024, Worthy played all 17 games, racking up 742 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns. Chiefs coaches and quarterback Patrick Mahomes have been vocal about wanting to throw downfield more in 2025. That should benefit Worthy, whose speed is his greatest asset as a wide receiver.

Tuesday, July 29, 8:02 AM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving was one of the biggest surprises from the 2024 draft class. He wrestled the lead-back role away from Rachaad White mid-season and rushed for 1,122 yards and eight touchdowns. Irving, who weighs under 200 pounds, told CBS Sports' Pete Prisco that he feels he can handle a large workload, but Prisco tweeted that he thinks the Bucs might try to limit him a bit to keep him fresh because of his small stature. While fantasy gamers would prefer for Irving to see all the work out of Tampa Bay's backfield, it is clear that the team still wants to give touches to White and Sean Tucker. That being said, Irving is still the lead back and showed last season he can be a dominant force at the running-back position. The team keeping him fresh is a positive in the long run and shouldn't deter fantasy managers from grabbing him as a low-end RB1 in upcoming drafts.