Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Will the rushing attack be effective?
By Larry Brake
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will put the ball into the hands of Peyton Barber. How effective will he be in 2019?
Remember when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would “pound the rock” with Mike Alstott? Apparently, that approach left with Jon Gruden. Will Peyton Barber be effective enough in the running game to take the pressure off Jameis Winston in the 2019 season, though?
Last season, Barber was the Buccaneers leading rusher. He ran the ball 234 times for 871 yards with five touchdowns. Barber averaged 3.7 yards per rush. Will he improve those rushing numbers under new head coach Bruce Arians?
There’s a very good chance that Arians will utilize the running back by committee approach. In his last season at Arizona, Arians used four different running backs but relied on two to carry the load. Incidentally, Andre Ellington rushed for 53 yards on 15 carries with one touchdown that year in Arizona.
What should you expect from Arians in the rushing attack? He seems to be impressed with Barber. Mark Inabinett of al.com reports the following:
"“Not every back’s going to be a home-run hitter. He gets those 10-, 15-yard runs breaking tackles, power runner — punishing runner. When we’re building something, that’s the kind I want to build around.”"
It sounds like Barber will be the rock-pounder. Could Ronald Jones be a contributor to the running attack to complement Barber? It’s possible that Jones will be the lightning to the thunder of Barber.
Last season, Tampa Bay was near the bottom in rushing offense, ranking 29th in the league. They rushed for 1,523 yards. The Buccaneers averaged just 95.2 rushing yards per game. They must improve in order to compete for the NFC South division title.
Even though the NFL looks to becoming a passing league, being able to run the ball moves the chains. Barber will get his chance to prove that he can “pound the rock”. He better, because he becomes an unrestricted free agent following this season. A great performance is rewarded with a great contract.
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Barber stands 5-11, weighing 225 pounds. He was signed as an undrafted rookie from Auburn. Barber has gone from being not wanted in the draft, to becoming a building block in the Buccaneers offensive scheme. Barber will be effective in the running attack.