TAMPA - Head Coach Todd Bowles said the Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to find a way to split backfield reps among three running backs after all three contributed to the team’s only two scoring drives in a 17-14 Week Four loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Bucky Irving led the team with 61 rushing yards on 37 of 63 offensive snaps, while Kenny Gainwell logged 27 snaps and caught the touchdown pass that capped an 84-yard drive early in the fourth quarter - his first score as a Buccaneer. Sean Tucker, who entered the game with just one offensive snap all season after missing the opener with a minor hamstring injury, scored on a two-yard run that temporarily tied the game 7-7, then kept the drive alive with an eight-yard gain to the 11-yard line on fourth-and-one.

“I mean, he’s tough,” Bowles said of Tucker. “He needs to earn a few reps. I mean, we’ve got to find a way to split the three backs kind of…it doesn’t have to be equally, but, you know, a hot hand should be able to ride a little bit longer - the same thing we discussed.”

Tucker’s three carries for 10 yards were his only plays against Green Bay, but his two-yard touchdown - in which he cut sharply outside before accelerating over left tackle - was his first significant play of the 2026 season. Bowles indicated the performance could earn Tucker a larger role going forward. Tucker led the Buccaneers with eight touchdowns last season, running 86 times for 320 yards and catching eight passes for 34 yards. In 2024, he carried 50 times for 308 yards and two scores while adding nine catches for 109 yards. He holds a career average of 4.3 yards per carry with 10 touchdowns on 154 career carries.

Irving, who has played 159 snaps through four games compared to Gainwell’s 108, remains the lead back. Gainwell received just three handoffs against the Packers despite his 27 snaps. Rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels ended the 84-yard drive with a scrambling third-down pass to Gainwell, who caught the ball at the first-down sticks and dove into the end zone. Irving was the catalyst on that possession, carrying five of the drive’s 12 plays. The Buccaneers’ other scoring drive covered 54 yards.

The Buccaneers return to action in Week Five with Tucker’s expanded role expected to be tested in practice this week.