After the confetti fell and the Super Bowl boat parade reached its final destination, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers turned their attention to bringing the band back for another title run. Despite a league-wide cap crunch and several highly coveted players set to hit the open market, the reigning champs did exactly that, returning nearly every starter and key player from the previous season.
For the offense, that meant Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones will again share the backfield with former Cincinnati Bengals tailback Gio Bernard joining the rotation.
Fantasy football analysis: Bucs RB Leonard Fournette
Fournette joined the Buccaneers just before Week 1 of the 2020 season and saw his workload fluctuate over the ensuing three months. He entered December with zero starts and just three touchdowns. He went on to start every game in December, doubling his touchdown total for the season before adding four more during the playoffs.
One might understandably assume Fournette would enter 2021 as the Buccaneers’ primary back, but Jones hasn’t disappeared from the rotation. It appears that head coach Bruce Arians and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich will again platoon the two on early downs with Bernard, who returned to practice Monday, serving as the primary receiving back. Once again, Tampa Bay’s backfield seems destined to befuddle fantasy managers all season.
Fantasy start/sit recommendation
Start Leonard Fournette as a FLEX.