Just Say No To "Blount vs. Martin"

The new version of "Thunder and Lightning"

We here at BuccaneerTalk.com are getting pretty tired of hearing sportswriters, talk radio personalities, and other sports pundits speculate about who Tampa Bay's starting Runningback will be.  It is our opinion that it truly does not matter who will start.  There are countless headlines that deal with this subject, and even some with the ignorant heading of "Blount vs. Martin".  To us, this is absolutely ridiculous, and seems to us like this is just a way to distract our team that already has enough on its plate to deal with.

Honestly, who starts as our Runningback is a subject that should not even be bothered with.  If you've paid attention to the NFL in the last few years, you will know that most successful teams go with a Runningback-by-committee approach.  The only exceptions are the teams with "all-galaxy" Quarterbacks, i.e. Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers.  Those teams depend so much on their Quarterbacks that their Runningbacks are basically irrelevant.  We do not have that luxury of depending on a golden-armed Quarterback.  We are still developing our young QB, Josh Freeman, and the more Runningback help he has, the quicker he will get to "elite" status in the eyes of "experts" in the media field.

Legarrette Blount

We find it highly ironic that the media is trying to pair up Legarrette Blount versus another Boise State product in Doug Martin.  We all know what happened the last time Blount was at odds with a player from Boise State.  It almost seems that making a big deal out of who will start, is a way for the media to try to get a rise out of Legarrette Blount.  At this point of time, its also somewhat disrespectful to Blount to even bring this matter up.  Doug Martin has not played or practiced a single down in a game or practice.  So he still has much to prove and would be wise to not stir the pot by giving these insinuations of a "position battle" any type of credence.  Martin or Blount fanning these flames will only cause an unwarranted and unnecessary distraction to our team.

Doug Martin

The success of our ground attack depends on these two young men working together as opposed to working against each other.  There's nothing wrong about trying to outperform and outproduce each other, but it must be done in the name of "what's best for the team", and not "what's best for me".  These two men will each get their touches this season, and we believe that this will make our offense much more dynamic, and much more difficult for defenses to contain.  If these two young men are smart, and the team's Media Relations Director is smart, these two Runningbacks should only discuss working together, and making this the best ground game in the league.  They have a potentially dominating offensive line at their disposal.  A harmonious running back committee is much more worrisome for a defense than a committee comprised of individuals. 

Two-time Super Bowl Champs Brandon Jacobs (L) and Ahmad Bradshaw (R)

If you're reading this, and thinking that what's being discussed here is wishing for something out of the realm of reality, you don't have to go any further than this past season's Super Bowl Champion New York Giants.  They had at their disposal, two entirely different Runningbacks that were dynamic in their own respective ways.  In many ways, Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are eerily similar to what we expect from Blount and Martin.  If reference for a successful ground attack is needed, just watch how these two not only rooted for each other, but also pushed each other, and celebrated each other.  They became extremely close friends, and as a result, became two-time World Champs.  Local media, radio talk show personalities, and Bucs bloggers should shy away from the "Blount vs. Martin" nonsense. 

The blueprint has been placed before us by Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw.  If Legarrette Blount and Doug Martin can figure out a way to work together harmoniously, this offense can potentially carry us to another World Championship.  Go Bucs!