BOISE, Idaho — THIS DAY IN SPORTS…October 25, 2012, 10 years ago today:
Former Boise State star Doug Martin logs the first 100-yard rushing game of his NFL career, going for 135 to lead Tampa Bay to a 36-17 win at Minnesota. Martin had it wrapped up by halftime, gaining 106 yards on 14 carries before the intermission, including a 41-yard scamper. But his biggest play of the night came through the air when he bolted 64 yards on a screen pass to score early in the third quarter. One week later he set a Buccaneers’ record with 251 rushing yards and four TDs in a 42-32 win at Oakland.
Martin’s 1,454 yards as a rookie in 2012 ended up being his career-high, as were his 11 rushing touchdowns. The following two years, Martin played a combined 17 games, missing most of the 2013 season with a torn labrum, and seeing his role diminish in 2014. But he broke out again in 2015, recording another 1,400-yard campaign and making his second Pro Bowl. Following the season, he was signed to a five-year, $35.75 million contract, but he’d later forfeit $15 million of it after he was suspended for four games for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy in late 2016. Martin was released by the Bucs after the 2017 season and was signed by Oakland.
It’s disappointing that Martin never got another NFL shot after his final season with the Raiders in 2018. He replaced injured starter Marshawn Lynch and rushed for 723 yards, averaging 4.2 yards per carry. Martin hit the 100-yard mark in each of what ended up being the final two games of his career. His seven-year totals: 5,356 rushing yards and 30 touchdowns, and another 1,207 yards receiving.
The only other former Bronco ever to rush for 100 yards in an NFL game had been Brock Forsey, who ran for 134 for the Chicago Bears in a 2003 win over the Arizona Cardinals. Since then, Jay Ajayi and Alexander Mattison have joined the club. Martin had 12 career 100-yard games, Ajayi six, Mattison three (so far), and Forsey one.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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