Head to head · July 2026 draft-day read
Bucky Irving or David Montgomery?
Bucky Irving was the stronger 2025 producer — 12.3 vs 9.1 half-PPR points per game, at essentially the same July 2026 draft cost (ADP 48.2 vs 53.8). That gap was the draft-day case for Bucky Irving.
Our read, framed from the cited 2025 data below — opinion, not a projection.
Metric by metric
The tale of the tape
| Bucky Irving | Metric | David Montgomery |
|---|---|---|
| 48.2 (RB22) | Draft ADP (July 2026) | 53.8 (RB23) |
| 51 | Overall ADP rank (July 2026) | 54 |
| 12.3 | Fantasy points / game | 9.1 |
| 10.7% | Target share | — |
| 7.6% | Target share, last 3 games (2025) | — |
| 22 | Sleeper search rank (July 2026) | 48 |
Purple marks the better figure. A dash means the engine did not cite that metric for that player. 2025 regular season via nflverse · ADP via Fantasy Football Calculator, Jul 15, 2026 snapshot.
The consensus read
July 2026 drafts separated them by a hair — Bucky Irving at ADP 48.2, David Montgomery at ADP 53.8. On 2025 production it is 12.3 vs 9.1 half-PPR points per game.
What had to be true
This call flipped on beliefs that were checkable at the time. Every belief was tied to a checkpoint: the exact data point that would confirm or deny it, with its value at the time of the July 2026 read.
Strong move if you believed…
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Bucky Irving's late-2025 target dip was matchup noise, not a role change
Checkpoint: target_share, last 3 games vs season (2025)
7.6% last 3 vs 10.7% season (2025) · as of July 2026
Poor move if instead…
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Bucky Irving's target share is fading from the season baseline
Checkpoint: target_share, last 3 games vs season (2025)
7.6% last 3 vs 10.7% season (2025) · as of July 2026
Sources: Fantasy Football Calculator · Sleeper · nflverse. Every figure here is a value the analysis engine cited from the underlying data. Stats are 2025 regular season via nflverse (CC-BY 4.0); ADP via Fantasy Football Calculator (Jul 15, 2026 snapshot, not updated in-season).
FantasyTools analysis is opinion for entertainment purposes only — not betting, financial, or professional advice.