Buccaneers: Doug Martin earning praise, not endorsement
By James Yarcho
Buccaneers running back Doug Martin has received plenty of praise through OTAs and mandatory mini-camp. One thing he has not received is an endorsement from general manager Jason Licht or head coach Dirk Koetter.
I’m as skeptical about Buccaneers’ running back Doug Martin this season as anyone. That being said, I also understand how dynamic he can be. In his two full seasons he was a Pro Bowl running back and in 2015 he was second in the NFL in rushing.
But we all already knew that, right?
Coming off an injury riddled season and after being suspended for a positive drug test – with three games left to serve – all the praise and adulation for Martin has re-emerged based on his performances in shorts and t-shirts. Color me pessimistic, but that isn’t good enough.
In fact, it may not be good enough for Koetter, either.
On a recent appearance on Ira Kaufman’s podcast through Joe Bucs Fan, the subject of Martin was broached regarding if he’s going to be the starter after he returns from his suspension and Koetter was complimentary, not committal;
"“If everything was 100% perfect, I don’t have experience with a guy taking three weeks off then coming back. So, you have practices in there and you have to kinda see it. It would kinda depend on how we’re doing as an offense, how we’re doing with our running game. We’ll just have to see.”"
This is the doubt and fear that I’ve spoken about numerous times. The inability to trust Doug Martin after seeing two years of dominance shadowed by three years of struggles. It’s going to take a lot more than some OTAs or mini-camp practices to change the minds of those who doubt – and apparently it will take far more than that to sell Koetter on the idea of handing the job back over.
We have yet to see Jeremy McNichols do anything as a Buc, Jacquizz Rodgers is returning, and then there’s Charles Sims who doesn’t really add much as a runner so much as he does a pass catcher.
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Relax on the Doug Martin hype train. The Buccaneers may not be as excited about Martin as many of the fans are.