Martin makes Tampa Bay’s offense tick
TAMPA — The Bucs’ groundbreaking moment came against New England last week when Doug Martin took a deep handoff and ran into the line behind tight end O.J. Howard. He made a jump cut to his right and sliced left away from Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler, slipping the tackle and dragging cornerback Stephon Gilmore and safety Devin McCourty a half yard shy of the end zone.
“I just wanted to go out there to show everybody that I’m back,” Martin said. “I had fresh legs, and like I said, I was actually surprised how quickly the reads came and the quick twitch and all of that so it was a good feeling to have.”
Nobody feels better than the Bucs, who were the victims of identity theft when Martin was suspended four games — one in 2016 and the first three this season — for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs.
Balance between the run and pass game, especially on first and second down, and explosive plays has been the Bucs’ blueprint under coach Dirk Koetter.
Martin’s runs set up Jameis Winston’s play-action passes, enabling the Bucs to control the game and keep their defense fresh enough to create turnovers.
That’s how the Bucs want to play and how they typically win. Need proof? Since Koetter arrived as offensive coordinator in 2015, Tampa Bay is 0-6 when it runs the ball 20 or fewer times. It is 9-1 when getting more than 30 rushing attempts.
The Bucs are 13-2 when they finish the game with a positive turnover ratio (4-0 when Brent Grimes intercepts a pass). They are 1-4 when the giveaway-takeaway ratio is even, 3-13 when it’s negative.
Tampa Bay is 4-2 when Winston throws three touchdown passes, but only 3-5 when he passes for at least 300 yards.
On Sunday, the Bucs return to Arizona, ground zero for Martin’s 2016 implosion — first professionally and then personally.
He suffered a hamstring strain in the first half of a humbling 40-7 loss Sept. 11, 2016 at Arizona. Four weeks later, he suffered a setback trying to prepare for a game at San Francisco that prevented him from returning until mid-November.
By then, Martin barely resembled the guy who earned two trips to the Pro Bowl. Only once in his six games did he average more than 3 yards per carry. With the Bucs needing one more win to reach the playoffs, Martin was inactive in a crippling loss at New Orleans.
Revelations of his positive drug test and impending suspension followed. He had left the team by the time Tampa Bay beat Carolina in the finale.
Suspended for the first three games this season, Martin hadn’t had any contact in about five weeks when he took the field against the Patriots Oct. 5. He was explosive, averaging 5.7 yards on 13 carries.
Koetter said he believed Martin tired in the fourth quarter after 25 plays. That workload is expected to increase Sunday against the Cardinals.
“If we’re getting the Doug that we’ve seen at his best, and he looked good the other night in the 25 snaps that he got, it gives you an explosive back,” Koetter said.