With Trent Richardson continuing to underperform and Doug Martin dealing with a knee injury, could the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers change things up in their backfield? Backups Ahmad Bradshaw and Bobby Rainey are no strangers to experience.
The Colts acquired Trent Richardson last September from the Cleveland Browns for a first-round pick and he's been a disappointment as the team's No. 1 running back. In 2013 with Indianapolis, Richardson carried the ball 157 times for just 458 yards (2.9 average) and three touchdowns, including three fumbles. In the Colts' home playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Richardson had one carry and lost a fumble, after which he didn't touch the ball again in the postseason.
He's already off to a slow start this year. Against the Denver Broncos last week, he carried the ball just six times for 20 yards. To be fair, the Colts were down 24-0 at halftime and were in no position to be running the ball, but Ahmad Bradshaw could be creeping up on Richardson. Bradshaw finally recovered from his neck injury and had a solid game on Sunday night catching five passes for 70 yards and carrying the ball three times for 15 yards. The running back by committee system in Indianapolis could be a way to avoid Richardson from taking most of the carries and hurting the flow of the running game.
Doug Martin, taken in the same draft as Richardson, had an impressive rookie year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He amassed 950 rush yards and 367 receiving yards for a combined 12 touchdowns, but played only six games last season and scored only one touchdown because of a shoulder injury. He's not off to a great start this year either after his poor Week 1 performance against the Carolina Panthers in which he carried the ball nine times for nine yards and had one reception for seven yards before exiting with a knee injury. He practiced on Thursday and Friday this week, but is his job safe?
According to Tampa Bay Bucs reporters Greg Auman and Pat Yasinskas, Martin's status as the No.1 back is OK amid the speculation that he was pulled from Sunday's game because of pass protecting issues and the belief that his workload would be minimized against the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. Here's what ESPN's Yasinskas had to say:
"Despite the limited expectations most had for Doug Martin, it was hard to not panic after he mustered just 9 yards on nine carries before leaving the regular-season opener with a leg injury. Is the panic warranted? Aside from a 54-yard rush from fullback Jorvorskie Lane last week, the running game was totally ineffective. But don't go benching Martin just yet. Multiple coaches and players have said the Bucs are committed to getting Martin going against the Rams. Keep him in your [fantasy] lineups."
The Bucs will host the Rams at 4:05 p.m. on Sunday and the Colts will host the Eagles on ESPN Monday Night Football.
