Fantasy Football handcuffs are an important part of the game and this year for anyone grabbing Doug Martin, the best FF handcuff players for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Bobby Rainey and Mike James and this comes after Martin missed most of the season in 2013 with injuries and that is why it will be important for fantasy owners to pick up at least one of those players.
Last season Martin played in just six games and while he put up solid numbers during that time, it wasn't close to what he did the year before because of the missed time. Last year Martin had 456 yards on the ground to go along with 12 receptions for 66 yards and one touchdown and now he is hoping to come back strong.
As a rookie Martin was fantastic and was one of the best PPR fantasy players in football, putting up a massive 1454 yard season on the ground with 11 touchdowns. Martin also had 49 catches for 472 yards and that is what fantasy football owners are expecting this year. The Buccaneers used him quite a bit in the preseason to get his legs back and he lined up with the first team offense and now he has the chance to be a top back again this season.
Rainey came in and stepped up with Martin out, rushing for a nice 566 yards while playing in all 16 games and he also had 15 catches for 46 yards. Rainey will not be the receiver that Martin is, but if anything happens, he likely will step up as the second player behind Martin ahead of James. Last season James also was good after coming in for Martin and he had one huge game with 158 yards against the Seahawks and if he can do that in spots again, he has value. He finished last season with 295 yards and he is a player to grab if Martin goes down.
Martin was one of the best players in the league as a rookie in reality and fantasy, but injuries derailed things last season. Martin now has the chance to come back and with a new head coach in Tampa he could be even better than he was a couple years ago. The team had added Mike Evans to the mix as a rookie with Vincent Jackson and that gives new quarterback Josh McCown some big targets.
The team ranked last in the league in passing yards per game last season and now McCown should greatly help that along with Evans. If Martin can stay healthy and keep the rushing game consistent it will give the Buccaneers a much more productive offense and it could get them into the playoffs.
The NFC south constantly has change at the top and after New Orleans and Carolina made the playoffs last season and both Tampa and Atlanta struggled, the standings easily could flip again. Lovie Smith is a smart coach and he should be able to get the offense and defense in shape for the season after all the turmoil in Tampa last year.