It was one of, if not the, most crucial moves this off-season. The Buccaneers had to bring back Doug Martin. Quite simply, their success hinges on him.
Doug Martin, love him or hate him, is back with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2016 and beyond. This was a critical acquisition to the Bucs’ success moving forward. Not to take anything away from Jameis Winston or his stellar rookie campaign, but we witnessed exactly how important Martin was last season. When he got the ball, the Bucs won. When his carries were taken away, or even non-existent in the second half, they lost. Plain and simple.
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In six Bucs wins last year, Doug Martin averaged 23 rushes a game for 110.8 yards per game. In ten losses, his carries dropped to an average of 15 per game for 73.7 yards. That is a massive drop off in both categories, and a four game difference between the two columns. Yes, a lot of times the Bucs were trailing and were “taken out of the running game”, but they didn’t have to be. In the second half of games in all of 2015, Doug Martin got nineteen carries. Yes, you read that right. Of those nineteen, twelve were on first down. Martin was completely abandoned in the third and fourth quarters, which is unacceptable for a player who gets better as the game goes on.
One of Martin’s biggest assets is his size and strength combination.
Defenses, no matter how good, get tired as the game goes on. A player as compact and strong as Martin should be able to wreak havoc on opposing defenses later in games, not becoming a spectator.
How about this for setting a tone; Martin had 156 carries on first-and-ten last season and averaged 5.3 yards per carry, gaining 25 first downs. That’s an average of 6.24%. You can’t make things much easier on your quarterback than averaging over half of the yards to gain on each first down.
Yes, some of Martin’s playing time was given to Charles Sims due to Sims being a better receiver out of the backfield. Doug is what he is in the passing game, but they can overcome that just as they did last season. Despite the 6-10 record, this was still the best statistical offense in team history. You don’t do that without key players at key positions. Yes, it feel awesome, awesome, to know that the quarterback position is solidified for the foreseeable future, a feeling Bucs fans have never known. It’s great that the offensive line appears to be good to go for the next few seasons. However, in this offense, it feels fantastic knowing Doug Martin will be back to pick up where he left off.
Martin has had his share of issues and miscues on the field. No one will honestly deny that. Under Koetter, he proved he is a formidable weapon and can run with the best backs in this league. A second year in the system, a second year with Winston, and Martin could potentially have an even better performance than 2015. It’s simply up to him. Will he show up in the same phenomenal shape he was in last season? Will he be hungry for bigger and better things after getting his contract? Will he and Winston continue to play perfectly off one another, taking the pressure off each other and instead placing it on that of the defense? Challenging them to stop them as they continue to grow with one another, developing chemistry?
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Only time will tell, but if I was a betting man, I’d put money on the fact that last season’s Martin wasn’t a guy out for just a contract. He was a guy proving he wasn’t a one year wonder. Proving he belongs in the same conversations with DeMarco Murray and LeSean McCoy. A guy who wants to bring success back to the Bucs. And at the end of the day, the Bucs need that kind of player, that 2015 Doug Martin, if they are going to succeed again.