Following a prolonged absence due to injury, Tampa Bay Buccaneers star running back Bucky Irving has returned to practice.

This is massive news for the Buccaneers, who have been scuffling on offense in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Irving has been recovering from foot and shoulder injuries, both of which were suffered during the team’s game vs. the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 4.

Although Bucky Irving did finish that game vs. Philadelphia, news broke shortly thereafter that he was dealing with two injuries at once. The Buccaneers eventually revealed that they were a foot injury and a shoulder injury, and that the shoulder injury was the more pressing issue. True to form, however, the Bucs remained very tight-lipped regarding Irving’s status following the injury, and there was very little information to go off of when it came to fans and media trying to forecast a potential timeline for the star RB to return.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) attempts to stiff arm Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cooper Dejean / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

It’s encouraging news that Irving has re-taken the field with his teammates for the first time since September, but it’s also too early to say whether or not we can expect him to play this Sunday vs. Buffalo.

It’s also important to acknowledge that today’s practice was just a walkthrough, which is obviously an ideal scenario for Irving to begin ramping up his activities — he still doesn’t have to have contact on his shoulder, which is the main concern for him at the moment. Regardless of how far along in his recovery he really is, it was surely encouraging for Bucky Irving’s teammates to see him taking handoffs during the walkthrough.

Whether or not Bucky will be able to get up to speed in time for this Sunday’s game remains unclear, but one thing is for sure — his impact on offense has been dearly missed. The Bucs have dropped two out of their last three games, and to make matters worse, they are about to embark on back-to-back road matchups vs. two of the best teams in the league in the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams.

Not only is Bucky Irving a dynamic runner of the football, but his ability to generate explosive plays in the passing game has also been an extremely important element of Josh Grizzard’s offense this season. Hopefully for the Buccaneers, Bucky Irving’s return to practice means they can expect to have their young offensive star back in the lineup sooner rather than later.