Ke'Shawn

Vaughn

Breida wasn’t expected to be long for the 49ers after signing with them earlier this month. His signing came following an injury to Isaac Guerendo, and the Niners are already deep at running back with Christian McCaffrey, Elijah Mitchell, and Jordan Mason sitting atop the depth chart. In addition to Breida, the 49ers also released RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn and waived P Pressley Harvin, OL Lewis Kidd, and WR Jontre Kirklin.

The Buccaneers selected Vaughn in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft. The former Vanderbilt Commodore never lived up to his Day 2 draft capital, as he seemingly fell behind every running back the team signed after drafting him. To nobody’s surprise, Vaughn played behind Leonard Fournette during his three-year stint with the team, but Rachaad White, Chase Edmonds, and rookie UDFA have all been for most of this season. Vaughn has rushed 103 times for 384 yards and two touchdowns in 43 career games. He’s surpassed 50 rushing yards only twice in his career and saw the best game of his career come in December 2021 when he rushed for 7-70-1 against the Panthers. At 26 years old, Vaughn is already nearing the age cliff for running backs, which is yet another indictment on the career backup. He’ll likely get another chance elsewhere, but he has little to no fantasy upside regardless of the landing spot.

Also inactive for the Buccaneers are QB John Wolford, RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn, CB Jamel Dean, LB Devin White, and OL Brandon Walton. Vea is one of three key defenders out for the Buccaneers, with Dean and White also out against the Falcons. The Buccaneers defense will have to manage with a weaker front seven and secondary as a result. Vaughn continues to be an inactive from the Buccaneers backfield as the team’s fourth running back.

Vaughn is now firmly fourth on the Bucs running back depth chart behind Sean Tucker, but that has been the case for a couple of weeks now. While Vaughn is the biggest name on the list, Feiler is likely the most impactful since he has been starting at left guard for Tampa Bay. Being down a starting offensive lineman against this 49ers defensive line is never something you want.

On one hand, Rachaad White was so ineffective that the Bucs continued to try and work Vaughn into the running game after getting 10 touches in Week 4. On the other hand, Vaughn was also ineffective again. He can be put on fantasy radars now that he’s being given an opportunity to push for more playing time, but he has yet to show anything on the field that suggests he can take the starting job in Tampa Bay.

Vaughn took over as the Bucs’ RB2, relegating Sean Tucker to the bench. He saw ten touches, including a goal-line carry. The Buccaneers’ backfield belongs to Rachaad White, but the team’s RB2 (this week being Vaughn) will continue to get touches on a few possessions per game. Vaughn, however, is not worth a spot on fantasy rosters just yet.

The Buccaneers will start the season without major inactives. Ke’Shawn Vaughn was pushed down the depth chart this week, surpassed by Sean Tucker and Chase Edmonds and will enter the season inactive. Rookies Cody Mauch and Calijah Kancey are good to go after injury concerns prior to the game.

Vaughn had a chance to earn the RB2 job behind Rachaad White, but will open the season as the RB4 behind White, Sean Tucker, and Chase Edmonds. Vaughn’s decision to not practice likely won’t do him any favors in climbing the depth chart, as he’s unlikely to be active on game day with the other backs healthy. There’s no reason to stash Vaughn in any league format at this time.

Bowles didn’t elaborate on the situation any further. Vaughn entered training camp contending for the RB2 gig behind Rachaad White. Undrafted rookie Sean Tucker ultimately won the job and Chase Edmonds was also listed ahead of Vaughn on the team’s final depth chart of the offseason. Vaughn appears to be an afterthought for the Tampa Bay offense heading into the season.

The undrafted rookie beat out Chase Edmonds and Ke’Shawn Vaughn for the job. Tucker has been repping with starters for weeks so this doesn’t come as a surprise. Tucker’s profile is better than most Day 2 backs — rushing for over 3,000 yards as a three-year ACC starter — but medical concerns pushed him off draft boards. Standalone value may not be there for Tucker if Edmonds plays on pass downs, but Tucker is the zeroRB pivot to Rachaad White.