It’s starting to feel like Tampa Bay Bucs fans can’t make it 24 hours without getting another little shot of bad news.
Tuesday it was wide receiver Vincent Jackson’s torn ACL. Wednesday it’s word of a recovery setback to already-injured running back Doug Martin.
“Doug, unfortunately, did suffer a setback a week ago Sunday,” head coach Dirk Koetter said Wednesday. “We’ll just have to see when he can make it back. There’s no timetable on that right now. Again, that’s not my department. There will be an injury report, but Doug did suffer a little setback.”
Martin’s been out since injuring his hamstring during Tampa Bay’s Week 2 loss in Arizona. Koetter did not offer any specifics, but aggravating his injury two Sundays ago means it occurred day before the team’s Monday night win in Charlotte.
With or without Martin, Tampa Bay’s running game has struggled to get itself going this season. The Bucs enter Sunday’s contest in San Francisco with the league’s 27th ranked ground attack, averaging just 88.6 yards per game. Newcomer Jacquizz Rodgers added a spark to the backfield and stepped up by rushing for 101 yards on 30 carries against Carolina, but now he and the team need to show they can recreate that productivity week after week.
“Your run game gets better if you run it more,” Koetter said about establishing the run. “‘All right, coach, well run it more.’ Well, you’ve got to make yards, you’ve got to have efficient runs and you’ve got to be moving the chains. If you’re doing that and you’re running it more and you’re repeating runs, your line and your backs both have a tendency to get stronger as you go. But if you’re going three-and-out … and then you fall behind on the scoreboard, it’s hard to keep running it. That’s just a reality.”
Compounding the Bucs’ issue at running back was the injury to Charles Sims III Week 4 against Denver. Rookie Peyton Barber received his first career rushing attempts in Carolina, going for six yards on three attempts, and Tampa Bay signed seventh-year veteran Antone Smith this week.
Offensive coordinator Todd Monken said Wednesday that he and his staff “anticipate giving [Smith] opportunities” this week. Smith, who played his college ball at Florida State, began his pro career with the Atlanta Falcons and ran in an offense led by Koetter from 2012-14. When asked about Barber, the Bucs first-year coordinator said he’s developing but still needs some work to see significant time.
“I think Peyton’s going to be a good football player; he is a good football player,” Monken said. “He just needs more seasoning in terms of protections. It’s hard when you get a young player in. What they need is reps and the least thing you can get him is reps, if that makes sense. You get young, developmental players and they come in and before you know it the season gets here and it’s over. You’ve got to go with guys that understand the system and that are ready to function. So do I think he’s going to continue to develop? Yes, because he has a good skill set, he’s competitive and I think he’s going to be a good football player. It’s just a matter of time and just continuing to play. And when his opportunities come, taking advantage of them.”
