Oregon Ducks in NFL Get Big Injury Updates Ahead of Training Camp

The 2025 NFL season featured former Oregon Ducks standouts making waves across the league. While former cornerback Christian Gonzalez made the Super Bowl with the New England Patriots, Oregon saw four former quarterbacks earn starts in the same week for the first time.

Ahead of the 2026 season, multiple Ducks in the NFL come off notable injuries entering training camp, including former Oregon teammates quarterback Bo Nix and running back Bucky Irving, as well as former All-American defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.

Bucky Irving a 'Full-Go' for Training Camp

oregon ducks nfl bucky irving bo nix deforest buckner dan lanning training camp injury denver broncos tampa bay buccaneers — Oregon Ducks running back Bucky Irving (0) carries the ball during the second half of the game against the USC Trojans on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Irving dealt with injuries throughout the 2025 season after a breakout rookie season in 2024. He had shoulder surgery in the offseason, but it appears that there is light at the end of the tunnel for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers star.

According to Fox 13 multimedia reporter Mark Skol Jr., Irving said at his annual youth football camp that “he will be good to go for training camp.”

The Buccaneers selected Irving in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. As a rookie, he rushed for eight touchdowns and 1,122 yards. His second year, riddled by injuries, saw those numbers take a dip, with four total touchdowns and 588 rushing yards.

Irving transferred from the Minnesota Golden Gophers to the Ducks before his sophomore year of college. Under coach Dan Lanning, Irving recorded back-to-back 1,000-plus-yard rushing seasons in his two years at Oregon.

While 2025 broke up an impressive three-year stretch for Irving that carried from Oregon to the NFL, he has an opportunity to bounce back in 2026 with a healthy season.

DeForest Buckner Progressing Through Rehab

Buckner, the former Ducks defensive tackle and Indianapolis Colts star, suffered a herniated disc in his neck in week 9 of the 2025 NFL season that landed him on the injured reserve. He underwent surgery at the end of the season and didn’t practice in the spring.

According to The Athletic’s James Boyd, Buckner was “noncommittal on when he could return” but said he was aiming for week 1 of the 2026 season.

Buckner is a three-time Pro Bowler and earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 2020. The Colts' pass rush struggled in Buckner’s absence at the end of the season, as the franchise fell short of the postseason.

Accolades aren’t anything new to Buckner since he joined the NFL. At Oregon, he earned back-to-back All-Pac-12 honors, including being named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2015. He was also named a First-Team All-American in 2015 and won the Morris Trophy.

Buckner played for the Ducks from 2012-2015. His Oregon career was capped off with a 2015 season in which he totaled 83 tackles and 10.5 sacks. He went on to get selected No. 7 overall in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers.

Bo Nix Expected Back From Injury

Another former Oregon standout who received offseason surgery was the former quarterback Nix. The Denver Broncos quarterback sustained a broken ankle against the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, which held Nix out of the AFC Championship last season.

Nix revealed to The Denver Post in June that he received a second offseason surgery in April to deal with bone spurs. He appeared at Broncos minicamp in June, but was limited. Denver coach Sean Payton, however, told the media that “he’ll clearly be ready in time for training camp."

The quarterback totaled 7,706 passing yards and 54 touchdowns in just his first two seasons in the NFL after being the No. 12 pick in 2024. Nix played alongside Irving at Oregon under Lanning from 2022-2023. With the Ducks, Nix left as the program’s all-time leader in competition percentage and broke three additional single-season program records (completions, passing yards, passing touchdowns).

Nix also dealt with ankle injuries during his time in college. Before he transferred to Oregon, Nix required surgery for a broken ankle at Auburn in 2021. After dealing with injuries with the Tigers, the quarterback broke out upon transferring to Oregon. When he was with the Ducks, Nix didn’t deal with any long-term injury, although he did deal with an injury scare late in his first rivalry game against the Washington Huskies in 2022.

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