Buccaneers vs New York Jets: Game Changers for Week 10
By Bailey Adams
Doug Martin
With Jameis Winston and Mike Evans missing from the Buccaneer offense, there will be a lot of pressure on the run game to contribute. Doug Martin will likely be the key to this offense on Sunday. His performance could very likely dictate whether or not the Bucs are competitive in Sunday’s game. If he has another performance like he did last Sunday against New Orleans, Tampa Bay could be in trouble.
Martin failed to find running room on Sunday against the Saints, due in large part to a poor day from the offensive line. The veteran carried the ball just eight times for seven yards in the blowout loss. He is still averaging 3.5 yards per carry this year, and what he does well doesn’t necessarily show up on the stat sheets. His numbers never seem to be too impressive, but he is very good at fighting for tough yards. The problem is, there’s not much he can do when he is meeting contact right at the line of scrimmage on a consistent basis.
With the lack of certainty in the passing game this week, Martin will need to give the Bucs some help on the ground. An equal amount of responsibility falls on the offensive line to open running lanes for him, of course. If the veteran can get some space, it could be big for Tampa Bay. New York’s run defense is in the bottom third of the league, which is good news for Martin and the Bucs.