The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are getting Doug Martin back, but fantasy football owners should look at Bobby Rainey and Charles Sims as the best RB pick up options and starter picks for the Bucs in Week 10, as Martin is coming off of an injury and with him being ineffective when he has played this season, Lovie Smith may use Sims and Rainey more with Josh McCown taking over as the starting QB for Mike Glennon.
According to ESPN.com, the Buccaneers are planning to use Rainey and Sims more moving forward even when Martin is fully healthy, as Martin has not been productive on the field this season. ESPN blogger for the Bucs Pat Yasinskas writes that the team is planning on using a two back rotation moving forward and that Martin could be listed third in that group. Martin has averaged less than three yards per carry when he has played this season and he has not looked good on offense.
This year Martin has 166 yards and it comes after he played in just six games last season. Martin rushed for over 1400 yards as a rookie, but he has not had that form in some time. ESPN.com reports Sims is likely to make his NFL debut this week, while Rainey is set to be the starter. Rainey had over 100 total yards last week and rushed for 87 yards against the Browns.
This is a fairly big fall for Martin after what he did as a rookie and to add insult to injury (no pun intended, but literally), he was reportedly shopped at the trading deadline this season. Rainey stepped up big last year when Martin was injured and he has shown that he can be the lead back. Smith has high hopes for Sims and now that he is off the temp IR, he could get a long look. If Rainey and Sims play well the rest of the way, expect Martin's name to come up once again.
The Buccaneers have been one of the most disappointing teams in football this season and while many did not expect the team to go to the playoffs, they surely expected better than this. The team is 1-7 on the season and they have put together one of the worst offensive and defensive units in the NFL. The offense is ranked 26th and 29th in passing and rushing yards per game and that is part of the reason why Smith is changing things up. The team is also ranked 31st in passing yards allowed per game and they are giving up nearly 115 yards on the ground per contest.
The Buccaneers come in having lost four straight games and they have a tough schedule coming up and that could put the team in a very bad spot. After playing the Falcons at home the Bucs have four of the next five on the road, including against the Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Carolina Panthers. The lone home game is against a division winner from last season in the Bengals. After that the team ends with the Packers and Saints and they could be 1-15 by seasons finish.
