Top Rusher Is Unnecessary
January 4th, 2016
Harsh reality
Take a look at this year’s 1,000-yard rushers in the NFL. Only one of them — one — is going to the playoffs.
You better believe Bucs general manager Jason Licht is paying attention.
Doug Martin’s contract is up. Hell be an unrestricted free agent in two months if the Bucs don’t re-sign him or slap the franchise tag on him.
Joe is in favor of Martin returning. Don’t misread this. But the reality is that the NFL is a changed league, one with devalued running backs and endless evidence that a big investment is unnecessary at the position.
There were seven 1,000-yard rushers this season, continuing the decline of that annual list. Adrian Peterson is the only guy with a game left to play. That is no coincidence.
The Bucs have a mountain of salary cap cash for 2016. So money isn’t much of a concern this year. Paying Martin $10 million or so with the franchise tag makes a lot of sense.
But if other expensive opportunities arise, potential long term Bucs solutions at key positions, then Joe would have no problem embracing Tampa Bay passing on Martin. If he does walk as a premium free agent, there’s a great chance the Bucs would recover a third-round compensatory draft pick in 2017.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:05 am
Franchise the man, address other areas. End of next year, either prep to draft RB or re-sign martin
January 4th, 2016 at 11:07 am
I would take the third round draft pick in 2017 for the new head coach!!!!
I also hope that if Lovie stays, that Keotter and Jamies will be allowed to slowly morph over to Keotter’s 4 vert offense!! of course we will need 2 new Wr and at least 1 O-line, and maybe a healthy pass catching TE
January 4th, 2016 at 11:09 am
Let him go, both because he won’t be worth the money and because the man deserves a chance to feel what not last place is like.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:14 am
doug is a luxury, but one we can absolutely afford. we have no better uses for that money…we are not the seahawks trying to juggle an all-time great defense and elite QB, we are a team that is still looking for guys talented enough to pay
January 4th, 2016 at 11:14 am
*elite QB on his second contract
January 4th, 2016 at 11:17 am
If Joe is correct and RBs aren’t valued as much……no other team should be willing to pay Martin as much as we would likely offer…..so make him an offer he can’t get in the FA market….if he refuses….let him go.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:17 am
Injuries have plagued the rb field this hear. Almost all of the playoff teams would have had a 1000 yard rusher if they had a healthy rb. Pittsburgh with bell/williams. Carolina’s stewart missed a bunch of games. Marshawn lynch got hurt midway through the season. Cardinals went through 4 rbs. Etc… You can’t spin stats to say winning teams dont have good running backs. That’s just stupid joe. And terrible journalism. You look at any of the playoff teams and they have good or great running games.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:20 am
With that said. Sure rbs are a dime a dozen. But Martin is special. You can pay an exceptional DB and not be hurt by it. The market price for RBs isnt high, so you might as well spend a little cash for a dominant RB.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:21 am
*exceptional RB.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:24 am
I’d slap the franchise tag on him, been to inconsistent throughout his rookie contract. I’d like to see him prove himself for one more year, then sign him to a 2-3 year deal if he performs. However, having said that I do not want to see him go, good teams retain the talent they have and this team does not need more holes
January 4th, 2016 at 11:26 am
Martin might just luck out. Agree with not paying RBs big money, but tons of cap space the next 3-4 years, with all the big names locked up. Might be worth front-loading a deal with all the guaranteed money then see where we stand in 2018.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:29 am
Run the football and create turnovers. Isn’t that Lovie’s philosophy? Depressing, to say the least. In a league where the passing aspect of the game has clearly taken over and defense doesn’t really win championship anymore (don’t take Pete Carroll’s boneheaded call last year as an example of the contrary), our HC wants to play like our grandfathers used to do.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:33 am
We are a 6-10 team coming off a 2-14 season before that. You keep crying about not having depth but are willing to let go of the depth we do have (Glennon, Martin etc… ). Makes no sense. Martin is a huge part of the offense. No way can we let him go. Having tons of cap room means there is also no reason we should let him go. Keep the Dougernaut a Buc for life!!
January 4th, 2016 at 11:36 am
I will say if they tag him that’s fine. But had they simply picked up the 5th year option, we’d have him locked in for $5.5 million next season. I don’t think they’ll make any serious offers (i.e. offers at market value), they’ll try and bring him back on a “team friendly” deal, his agent will correctly tell him to wait until FA, and then he’ll get a really good offer from a much better team (Green Bay comes to mind).
You won’t convince me that they don’t prefer to have Sims as the #1 guy too. A 3rd round pick in this era on a RB is for that RB to start, not to be a situational RB (i.e. 3rd downs and blowouts). I expect Sims is the opening day #1 RB, and they’ll sign a cheap vet in FA to back him up.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:37 am
I complete agree with you unless there is another FA that I’m overlooking that we need to franchise instead. No one comes to mind. Putting the tag on Martin is the right decision. Let’s see if Martin can put together back-to-back solid seasons.
January 4th, 2016 at 11:59 am
Been saying it for 2 weeks now. Tag him.
January 4th, 2016 at 12:39 pm
Do u honestly think that if Lovie survives the week that they are going to pay Martin 2x as much as they would have to pay UFA Matt Forte? Love some Doug Martin, but watching this team run 7x in a row to start halves was ok while Winston was a rookie. To watch us be the only team that tries to run 40x a game for another season will be unbearable. You have the QB, throw the ball!! That is why Martin is expendable. ;
January 4th, 2016 at 12:47 pm
Do u honestly think that if Lovie survives the week that they are going to pay Martin 2x as much as they would have to pay UFA Matt Forte ( I don’t want forte) ? Love some Doug Martin, but watching this team run 7x in a row to start halves was ok while Winston was a rookie. To watch us be the only team that tries to run 40x a game for another season will be unbearable. You have the QB, throw the ball!! I know that we set franchise records on offense, but the philosophy is extremely flawed. Line up in shotgun (wher Winston us most comfortable) like EVERY really good offense in football. That is why Martin is expendable. Would much rather see them overpay Alshawn Jeffery or Mario Williams by 8million up front than pay a RB 8 million. It’s not my $ though.
January 4th, 2016 at 12:54 pm
i would bet that 1 year of the franchise tag amounts to about 2/3 of what you’d need to pay him in the first 2 years of the deal. they are better off working out a long term deal the team can walk away from painlessly after 2 seasons
January 4th, 2016 at 1:00 pm
@bucrightoff
If they guaranteed that extra year to Doug and he was hurt that is now fully guaranteed money if he plays or not. Out of the very few good decisions this team has made I think that is one. Why sign a guy that had back to back poor seasons for various reasons? Now if he was healthy and was bad they could of rescinded that offer like Washington will do with RG3.
I think we need to resign him and have two string backs in the backfield. I think a 4 year $28 million deal is fair to everyone. We will see.
January 4th, 2016 at 1:11 pm
Pay the man! He earned it this year. He has to be retained because running the ball well is necessary to protect Jameis, helps the defense rest, and keeps the ball away from the defense.
January 4th, 2016 at 2:00 pm
Yeah, the last thing a crappy bottom dwelling team with acres of cap room needs is an all-pro running back.
Put a fair offer on the table and get him resigned.
January 4th, 2016 at 2:20 pm
Ignorant people
Yes, the nfl is a passing league but the top teams and QBs still have the threat of a running game. Denver rolls when they run. GB -same. Seattle – same. Carolina – runs more than pass.
Then when you add in Winston is a very young QB—- they NEED to resign Martin. He is a much better runner than Simms. Together with Winston and Evans and hopefully VJax and another WR in the mix, the offense is going to get better and better.
January 4th, 2016 at 2:45 pm
Dave Says:
January 4th, 2016 at 2:20 pm
Ignorant people
Yes, the nfl is a passing league but the top teams and QBs still have the threat of a running game. Denver rolls when they run. GB -same. Seattle – same. Carolina – runs more than pass.
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Denver is currently using two UDFAs and a 3rd round pick: Total cap hit for all 3: under $2 million
Green Bay is currently using a UDFA, a 6th round pick and a 2nd round pick: Total cap hit for all 3: under $2 million
Carolina is currently using Jonathan Stewart, a high paid 1st round pick. But he hasn’t played for a month and they’ve rushed for more yards on average without him than with him. He likely will be cut this offseason.
Seattle if the only example you use that can apply to Martin, and even then Beast Mode is likely done after this year because Thomas Rawls costs $8.5 million less for comparable production.
So if your point was running backs are never worth the money, you are correct. Thanks for playing.
January 4th, 2016 at 2:48 pm
THIS IS BULLS#. DOUG MARTIN SHOULD NOT TAKE A PAY CUT BECAUSE LOVIE SUCKS!!!
January 4th, 2016 at 3:00 pm
they have to resign him at the right price because we need to fill so many holes thru FA and the draft….HOPEFULLY dirk will realize what he has in the backfield and not abandon the run in the SECOND QUARTER!!!!….GO BUCS!!!
January 4th, 2016 at 3:55 pm
@bucrightoff
So in your rb comparison JW is as good as those QB’s and teams? Look how GB has struggled this year because they cannot run all of a sudden, partly because Jordy isn’t stretching the D but that’s not any QB or teams to compare to the Bucs.
January 4th, 2016 at 4:24 pm
Patrickbucs Says:
January 4th, 2016 at 3:55 pm
@bucrightoff
So in your rb comparison JW is as good as those QB’s and teams? Look how GB has struggled this year because they cannot run all of a sudden, partly because Jordy isn’t stretching the D but that’s not any QB or teams to compare to the Bucs.
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They couldn’t run it last year either. Or the year before, or the year before. The were in the bottom 10 when they won the SB. They just aren’t a good running team. Jordy is indeed that biggest reason, by far, for their downfall. He stretches the defense and is an elite route runner. He opens up their entire passing game.
The point is, if Jameis really is this elite, top 5 QB in the future, he won’t need a top RB. He’s not going to grow into anything without throwing more and more. And when you invest heavily into the least valuable position in the league, you are forced to throw less and less to justify it. They should have picked up the 5th year option on Martin and this is a non-issue. They can tag him and let him go after next year too and that’s fine. But a long term deal has a high probability of backfiring, they almost always do.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:03 pm
Bucrightoff.
Panthers have a top back and cam
Seattle uses lynch
Denver has the threat of manning passing so the box isn’t stacked.
Packers have Lacey.
The point is JW progresses, faces less blitzing, and sees stacked boxes because of Martin.
The Bucs have plenty of cap space. Not s single reason not to keep him for a few years while it is his prime and a good young line is developing.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:11 pm
thank you Bucrightoff. like I said before, spend that 8 million on a bonus for Jefferey or a real pass rusher (one who has a history of getting sacks). I’d rather they overpay at those positions. We don’t need to run the ball 35 times a game, unless our D sucks and they want to keep them off the field, although that’s another reason not to run the ball 35 times a game because we have to score points. Let James throw and give him guys to throw it to. Doug Martin is a quality back, we need quality players, but because of his position, likely cost and the emergence of Charles Sims, he is expendable by any smart team. The other key in all of this is that he in no way is giving the Bucs a discount. His agent won’t let him, he won’t be able to find other clients if he does. Martin is about to cash in and should. Maybe they’ll let the Bucs match whatever offer he gets.
January 4th, 2016 at 6:12 pm
Keep Doug Martin, without him leaves a big hole. Why would anybody suggest getting rid of one of the best players on the team? A lousy season overall but Martin gets my vote for Bucs MVP this year. Besides, I think Sims is a helluva good back in the right situations. Running into the line carrying the bulk of attempts is not Sims forte. He would not last long with that duty. If the Bucs let Martin go they are dumber than I thought.
January 5th, 2016 at 12:04 am
Martin averaged 4.9 yards per carry. Sure we could hire some UDFA to fill in for martin next season (no one will debate that), but chances are that RB will not produce as well as Martin did this year. No RB had more 20+ yard runs than martin this year. More than AP, who had more carries this season.
Sims is a decent runner. We havent got a chance to see him be a bellcow running back yet so it’s hard for me to have confidence in him to be the main man yet. I think we have the perfect back field the way it was this year. We need 2 quality running backs. And having 2 rbs that can average 5 yards per carry is a huge advantage to our offense. If we were in cap hell then i can see us walking away from martin is he has a high asking price. But the way it stands now, we can afford him and 20 other quality players.
January 5th, 2016 at 1:13 am
Could not agree more, I like Doug but the college draft is full of running backs. Doug is good, exceptional the juror is still out. If Martin is resigned? hope the contract is incentive based.
A pass rusher and shut down corner is needed. This draft appears to be loaded with both.
Our kicking game, both punting and field goal, needs serious upgrades. There are a number of games, particularly Washington, I wonder what the momentum could have been with a made field goal?
January 5th, 2016 at 1:14 am
It is official. Doug Martin is this years runner-up for the NFL rushing title. Adrian Peterson had 1482 yards to Doug Martin’s 1402 yards. Congratulations to Doug and the Buccaneers Offensive Line for a great year. Re-sign Martin to a new contract.