Sometimes the promise of free agency can spur a player to kick it into another gear. That seems to be the case with Buccaneers running back Doug Martin.
The Bucs didn’t pick up the fifth-year option on Martin’s rookie contract, meaning he becomes an unrestricted free agent in March. According to Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune, Martin has responded to that with his best offseason in three years.
Martin was a first-round pick of the Buccaneers in 2012 and burst onto the scene as a rookie, starting all 16 games and rushing for 1,454 yards and scoring 12 touchdowns. But in two seasons since then he has declined significantly, gaining less than 500 yards in each of the last two seasons and scoring just one touchdown in 2013 and two touchdowns in 2014.
But with a good offseason, Martin has a good chance of beating out Charles Sims and Bobby Rainey and keeping the first-string running back job. And if he plays well in 2015, he’ll get paid in 2016, whether it’s in Tampa Bay or somewhere else.
