Buccaneers vs Panthers: 5 Bucs to watch in Week 8 of 2017

Doug Martin

I’m a big fan of the Buccaneers running to set up the pass, which sets up bigger runs, to set up bigger passes.

The Bucs themselves seem to be big advocates of playing their running backs in spurts.

In the first two possessions for Tampa, Martin got the ball seven times and gained 29-yards. Both drives ended with scoring opportunities, and the Bucs came away with six points.

The running back got his hands on the ball just two more times for the duration of the first half. Tampa tallied zero points in the same time span.

On his team’s first possession of the second half, Martin touched the ball four times total and gave his team 24 of the 75-yards they needed to get their first touchdown of the game.

He carried the ball twice in the Bucs’ next drive which lasted just five plays before a punt, but got the ball down to the Buffalo 40-yard line in the process.

He doesn’t necessarily even have to be gaining big yards to have an impact either. On the final scoring drive of the game for the Bucs, Martin had five touches, and tallied just nine yards. Yet, the threat of the running game ensured defenders couldn’t cheat, and helped Winston complete five passes on five attempts.

During the two drives Martin wasn’t involved in, Winston went 4-for-9 with a fumble and interception. Nearly half of his incompletions came without Martin involved in the offense.

Maybe this is all a coincidence. I don’t think so.

Bottom line is, the NFL knows Martin is a Pro Bowl caliber running back, and have to dedicate defensive attention to keeping him from busting loose.

When they do this, they open up more space and bigger holes for Buccaneers receivers to run through, and bigger windows for Winston to throw through.