Martin’s Numbers Continue To Sink

December 18th, 2016
Poor numbers get worse.

Poor numbers get worse.

Joe is constantly asked when he is going to quit making excuses for the offensive line for Doug Martin.

Joe is going to ask when folks are going to quit making excuses for Martin.

Entering the game, Martin was having his worst season in the NFL with a 3.0 yards per carry average. Well, tonight it got worse.

Martin ran for 42 yards on 16 carries. That’s an average of 2.6 yards per game.

All the folks who used the tired and lazy, knee-jerk excuse for Martin that it is the offensive line’s problems refuse to answer the following question from Joe: How is it if the offensive line isn’t blocking that aside from Charles Sims, every Bucs running back has a better average than Martin? Go ahead, take a stab at that?

Could it possibly be that Martin has lost a step? That’s what Joe believes.

(Yes, Gosder Cherilus stunk so bad he got benched for a rookie from Western Missouri State! This just in: One guy is not the entire offensive line.)

That’s eight games thus far Martin has played this season and he has yet to hit the 90-yard plateau. Only once this season has Martin rushed for more than 65 yards. That’s pathetic. That’s some kind of return for an $8 million salary this season (which, per Rotoworld.com, includes a $4 million roster bonus).

You can keep reaching to blame the offensive line. You can blame that Mars is behind the moon. You can blame Dirk Koetter for calling a Martin run on first down so often.

At some point, the fault has to rest at the feet of the core problem: Martin.

71 Responses to “Martin’s Numbers Continue To Sink”

  1. WeAreLost Says:

    Please stop with this the O line needs work and if it is the same next year then we can talk about Martin fair?

  2. TheBucsAnthem Says:

    Trade him for a third round pick!

  3. Mark Says:

    Stop blaming Doug Martin this offensive line cannot run block to save their lives. You keep pointing to Jacquizz Rodgers superior stats but they’re inflated from that 49ers game who have the worst running defense in the NFL.

  4. Chris Says:

    Damn, I really think you’re just trolling now . Gosder Cherilous played the worse game of an offensive lineman , well maybe since Derrick Thomas 10 sack game and you start with Martin. He must have really blew you off in the locker room at one time for you to hold this grudge

  5. Benjamin Coburn Says:

    do we start asking how much dead cap he has if we cut him in the off season? Oh and why was Quizz inactive? I thought him and Barber had something good going only a few weeks ago and now they aren’t used. Is the team just trying to avoid controversy for the sake of it or what? Martin might be worst back on roster at least for the way he’s playing right now

  6. Tampabaybucfan Says:

    My eyes don’t usually lie to me…..but I see two or three dlinemen on Martin almost every time he carries on 1st down. There are no holes…..period.

    And, yes he has also lost a step.

  7. Blake_bucsfan Says:

    O-line.
    O-line.
    O-line.

  8. Warthog Says:

    “This just in: One guy is not the entire offensive line”

    Nope. But one guy sharting his pants in the Oline is all it takes for basically any play to get blown up in the backfield.

    That’s you behind the keyboard, isn’t it Lee?

    Consider this theorem: Both the Oline AND Doug Martin are playing poorly.

    Did I just blow your mind?

  9. jwash Says:

    Do you even watch the games? The line was garbage with the exception of marpet.

  10. TheBucsAnthem Says:

    Bucs fans shouldn’t sugarcoat anything when it comes to d Martin. ……….he’s simply not an effective back for the bucs anymore.

    ……he’s older now and has sustained too many injuries and we all are seeing it play out from week to week……

    I think he’s a great short yardage back…..but not a back to carry the full load.

  11. cometowin2 Says:

    Defenitely need a tackle in the first 2 or 3 rounds. Cherilus sucks and Demar hasn’t been very good this year either.

  12. BuccaneerByBirth Says:

    1st and 5: can’t convert. We get THE turnover: 3 and out and punt. This o-line got completely linked today and I’m ashamed that Gosder is on this team. Whether it’s Martin or the O-line, this run game IS. A. PROBLEM

  13. mike10 Says:

    What Blake said:

    OLINE
    OLINE
    OLINE

    They were overpowered and oversized against an average DL. Even “dancing with the stars” Sims looked miserable.

  14. Warthog Says:

    LOL didn’t think I’d say this but…

    … we need sweezy

    #LichtKnew

  15. BuccaneerByBirth Says:

    Punked* not linked ^

  16. AFBucsMan27 Says:

    This post is comical. Barbers are inflated cause he has like 12 carries and one was a long one he broke and the end of a game. Rodgers had two good games against terrible defenses.

  17. NJBucsFan Says:

    We all know neither Joe is a stud talent evaluator….

  18. softastissueMcCoy93 Says:

    Martin went down on arm tackles missed several reads, but our line is trash too. We need 2 new starters on online next year. Wr. TE that can catch and block. We lose cuz our personnel grouping tip our play calls. Doug Martin and stocker in game run or deep play action. Martin sicks this year so defenders dont honor the fake. Brate and simms in its a pass. We need more weapons. But we could have won tonight if Winston played better.

  19. BusteisWinston Says:

    Sims is crap too. Good for dancing with the stars because that’s all he does is dance around. Jacquizz is probably the best RB on the team right now. Not good.

  20. cometowin2 Says:

    Sweeny is a guard. We need a tackle and a center too if we insist on running up the middle on virtually every first down.

  21. iamkingsu Says:

    That right side is going to get tested from here on out.

  22. WeAreLost Says:

    Holy Fuk some logic. Way to go Warthog.

  23. Trubucfan22 Says:

    Joe, there are slow running backs in this league. It doesnt take 4.2 speed to be a Good running back. Losing a step means he’ll get chased down from behind. But the problem is all of the unblocked defenders IN FRONT OF HIM. This o line sucks.

    And for the millionth time. THE OTHER RBS PLAYED AGAINST THE 9ERS DEFENSE. That is why they have a good average overall. Just stop joe. After the pitiful ahowing the o line just had in front of the entire nation, stop defending them.

    And i will openly say that martin is not running the same as last year, not sure what it is, but i do know that he is not getting any help from this o line.

  24. Lam Says:

    At least martin did something. This had to be Mccoy worst game. Ironically it was against one of the best o lines

  25. Destinjohnny Says:

    If Martin played for the boys 200 years tonight
    Online often and early on draft day

  26. Mike Evans GOAT Says:

    Which ever joe this is that typed is dumb @ss article is the one who should break off and start his own site. Called joeyucsfan.com. u obviously don’t watch the games. It’s clear that the oline SUCKS. Get it through your thick skull. Idk why u have such a hard on for dissing Martin, but it is completely undeserved. Did he refuse to do an interview with you or something?

  27. Mord Says:

    The O-line does need help
    And Martin *is* losing a step
    But … many of the chances that came up despite those two facts were sadly wasted

    It’s not just on the O-line and Martin

    And it was close

  28. Artemis Rand Says:

    Joe,
    Can we PLEASE get an ignore function so we don’t have to suffer through all of these little weasel trolls ?

    If not that, how about a premium type account with an ignore function.

    Hell, I’d pay for it just to deny these POS trolls their miserable pleasure…

  29. Lamarcus Says:

    And yes. This o line play today was horrid. Not martin fault and not even winston can throw behind that line

  30. Lamarcus Says:

    This is McCoy’s worst game

  31. Shane Says:

    Martin is bad. But this OL got exposed tonight Joe. Every turnover can be credited to the OL but Jameis continues to take blame. They need better OL.

  32. Rojas Says:

    Put Dak and Zeke behind our oline an see how good they play..

  33. Rojas Says:

    They would do just as bad as Winston and Martin

  34. WeAreLost Says:

    O line for 2017!

  35. TheBucsAnthem Says:

    I think Martin has the same speed as Alstott now…….but of course the Atrain was much better

  36. Trubucfan22 Says:

    Even after getting embarassed on national Tv, joe refuses to throw shade at his beloved o line. How much are they paying you in secret sponsorship money? I assume it is a lot since you refuse to see what even a blind man can.

  37. Artemis Rand Says:

    Jerry Jones is a robber baron of the lowest order.

  38. WeAreLost Says:

    Its hard listening to Winston taking all the blame for this loss. He did have some bad deep ball accuracy but not all on him.

  39. duthsty rhothdes Says:

    Laremy Tunsil would have been a great pick this year licht

  40. TheBucsAnthem Says:

    The buc didn’t get embarrassed? ???

  41. TheBucsAnthem Says:

    This was a total team loss period!

    …..but hats off to our defense for giving us plenty of opportunities to win!!!!!

  42. Artemis Rand Says:

    @ wearelost – I agree; however, I think he doesn’t want to throw people under the bus b/c it doesn’t do any good and leads to a lot of bad publicity and gossip mongering, etc…

  43. LargoBuc Says:

    BuccoDave, you just won this comments section.

  44. WeAreLost Says:

    @Artemis Rand
    You know Rand you are right it just sucks as*.
    Still have a decent shot at going 10-6 which is Fu*king cool as Sh*t.
    Go bucs!!!!!!

  45. WestCoastBucsFan Says:

    The running game was the best with Rodgers and Barber. Martin was rushed and given too many carries over the last couple of game. Imagine what a Mike James, Barber, Rodgers combination could have done these last couple of games.

  46. c-spann Says:

    The o line didnt play well but the playcalling is pretty obvious when the bucs run, DK, goes aggressive early in the 3rd and then goes to turn it down. DK needs to re tool his play calling

  47. iamkingsu Says:

    @joe

    Did you not see that screen pass?? They had it set up perfectly not only did they not block anyone but they didn’t even touch a cowboys player

  48. I'm tired and 87 is right Says:

    Joe you are right. Martin is just to up and down. He needs to learn patience. In fact when I saw Rodgers was not eligible to play today I knew that was not a good sign. Go with what works! Go Bucs! Never give up Bucs fans!!

  49. TampaBay AllDay Says:

    Joe must have a personal vendetta against Martin because oline and predictable play calling is obviously the problem.

  50. unbelievable Says:

    Dougie must have banged Joe’s wife. Or else joe has gone completely blind.

  51. WeAreLost Says:

    Holy Sh*t that is funny as Fu*k Unbelievable.

  52. Mike Evans GOAT Says:

    Joe when are u going to stop making excuses for the O line? And for world beater McCoy? Where was the preasure all night? Can stop the run, can’t rush the passer? This “Joe” is a Joke

  53. richardtyson Says:

    After all he is a Dominic draft pick.

  54. FishBuc Says:

    @Joe

    Sorry Joe, but I specifically watched the oline the entire game, especially on run plays, there were NO HOLES, when there was a crease, Martin got 6 to 8 yards. I understand that’s not a lot, but there was just no room and Shaun Lee is no joke.

  55. Que589 Says:

    Decision not to activate and play Jacquizz Rodgers was crazy!

  56. unbelievable Says:

    Thanks wearelost.

    It’s the only plausible explanation at this point!

  57. rayjay1122 Says:

    He is having a bad year because he got paid. Simple as that.

  58. WeAreLost Says:

    Well technically everybody getting paid that put on a jersey so….

  59. grafikdetail Says:

    not much you can do when two or three defenders are in your face as soon as you touch the ball… Elliot doesn’t do well when that happens either… martin ran hard and had some juice in the 1st then dirk went pass happy with an occasional run play

  60. JameisDungy Says:

    If Jameis makes a few more plays they beat the Cowboys.

    However, thats the problem right there. This offense only works when Winston is being a playmaker. There are no easy throws in this offense. Koetter taking on dual responsibilities as a HC/OC has produced less than stellar results. Yes the Bucs are 8-6, but thats primarily due to the play of the defense. Jameis is a much better QB this, but the #s don’t reflect it because of the injuries around him and average play calling.

    Where were the rollouts? Why does every 1st down red zone play have to be a run up the gut?

    I like Dirk. He’s a good HC, but I’m not sure about him still calling plays as well. Maybe he should do like Garrett does and let someone else call them.

    Bucs have bottom 10 offensive depth. Jason Licht really needs to step it up next year.

  61. aceinthehole Says:

    The difference in this game came down to talent. Dallas’ o-line is beastly. Elliot is a special runner. But this is a game that Dallas should have won by several TDs. To paraphrase Apollo Creed, “they won but the didnt beat us.” And that was all because of JW. Period. Not his best game, but the dude can play some ball when he gets it going. Keeping this game as close as it was with all of the turnovers shows serious fight. The Bucs can continue to build from this game.

  62. aceinthehole Says:

    I also agree about the rollouts. Geesh, JW is money when he is out of the pocket- so roll him away from that freak from Dallas.

  63. DallasBuc Says:

    JBF staked their position early on because it makes their BFF and business partner GM look better but fact is that the oline has sucked a bag of dcks all year blocking for the run game save a couple games against lousy defenses when Martin was injured.
    JBF refuses to acknowledge what their eyes see…atrocious run blocking.

  64. DallasBuc Says:

    Dallas owned the los on both sides of the football all night. But go ahead and blame one of your best players

  65. Brad Says:

    Bench Hawley please. It’s nice cute story that he’s got a mean streak and a tough demeanor. Have you ever seen an undersized C get steamrolled as often as him? Guys live in the backfield against him. He has been terrible all season. Not on the coaches film(I don’t pretend to watch) but in plain vision. By now Evans should have his head out of his ass. Oh, bench Martin too. throw a little more on first down while we’re at it.

  66. delson Says:

    Evans talent is being wasted in tb

  67. delson Says:

    Gosder needs to go.. i believe martin came back too early from injury the win streak pressured that tho. I see him run hard and make 2nd efforts but his intial cut and burst are very lackluster compared to last season. He has to be suffering a leg injury. I have no idea what game these joes are watching. Also when doug is in the defense knows doug will get the handoff 85% of the time so his cuts and bursts are SUPER IMPORTANT. He hardly gets passed to. With rodgers the dude is a threat in the run n pass game. So defenses are not as tipped off. Sims benefits in his run game from his receiving game. If im on def im calling pass everytime sims is in. But Sims should work on routes n become a slot wr he’s not as effective as a rb. Dak dinked n dunked on us all game i didnt understand the defensive playcalling. Our cbs were 8 yards off the line grimes can play that style but the rest of our dbs dont have the instincts to read routes and close space. Jameis has to learn how to compliment evans with his other receivers and tes. When talib said we knew jameis was going to throw to evans we just waited for it. I think that got into jameis’ head and made him rethink his targets. Brate humphries sims shepard are decent the combination of the 4 could equal an effecient pass game but we cant forget about our number 1. Are evans and jameis communicating in the huddle? Evans can out route most dbs but hes gotta watch his hands hes been grabbing alot of jerseys. All that said we need a rt asap. Joe said we dont draft a rt that high when us fans said before we should move d smith to rt and draft a franchise lt. Yet the conversation in may or april will be about rt. I want a number 2 wr 6’2 to 6’5 with speed from the first round of our draft. After that we can debate cb oline te or rb. Sims aint doin it. Idk about rodgers but i know we gotta stop relying on camp meat to field a winning team. Those are cute stories but i want mfin championship and a dynasty.

  68. Leighroy Says:

    I counted no less than 6 rush attempts that the Dallas D tackled the RB in the backfield for a loss. 1 of them was a Sims run, the rest Martin.

    STOP IT JOES

  69. Matt B Says:

    Did the Joes watch the game? Exactly what was Martin to do? It’s not lazy thinking or reaching to blame the offensive line. Martin was getting hit in the backfield. He never had a chance on many runs. Sometimes stats don’t tell the whole story. If it was Martin’s fault, why didn’t the coaches yank him for Rodgers or Barber?

    I seem to remember a similar criticism 2 season’s ago. Then last year Martin was the league’s second leading rusher. What I know for sure is that I have watched every snap and Martin has had so many negative runs through no fault of his own and carries where he has run in to a wall with no holes that it is killing his numbers.

  70. Gencoimports Says:

    For those of you who haven’t listened to the Commish’s latest podcast, please do. Some reasonable discussion on the offensive line problems that you will never hear from the Joes. Thank you someone on this site is reasonable.

    Is Doug Martin blameless? No, but he should not be the scapegoat either.

  71. Cobraboy Says:

    The Bucs were dominated fully at the LOS, period.

    That has to be addressed before these fantasy talks of a deep playoff run become reality.

    C is a problem. Hawley has juice, but he’s been dominated lately.

    I won’t be surprised to see Marpet moved to Center and Sweeny at RG next season.

    I watched the coaches film on Game Pass this morning. THERE WERE NO HOLES FOR ANY RB TO RUN THROUGH. Doug Martin cannot be held responsible for that fact.