







TAMPA, Fla. – Head coach Greg Schiano sees a little bit of Ray Rice when Doug Martin runs. Others see a blend of some of the NFL's past greats like Barry Sanders, Walter Payton and Emmitt Smith. That's why it's surprising to hear that Martin gets lost fast when it comes to knowing the modern history of the game.

Martin, 23, is a bright, well-spoken man who appears to earnestly think about questions before answering. But his base of football knowledge is limited. He was asked if he ever watched Roger Craig when he started studying running backs in high school. Martin, who was raised in Stockton, Calif., had an uncomfortable smile on his face.

View photos

"I don't know who that is," Martin said of the former San Francisco 49er who in 1985 became the first running back to gain both 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 receiving in a season.

If Martin's career plays out to its potential, he likely will hear Craig's name come up in comparison.

With the 31st pick in the draft, Tampa Bay may have found that multi-talented runner so many teams covet. He has a wonderful combination of wiggle, speed and power, all incorporated in a 5-foot-9, 223-pound body that looks like it has been put through a trash compactor.

He found his way to the football field without formal training as a freshman in high school and was good from the start. That carried over to four years at Boise State and his first pro training camp.

"He's the kind of kid who you could just drop on a field, run a toss play and he'll naturally know what to do," Buccaneers veteran cornerback Ronde Barber said. "It doesn't matter if he knows much about football. … I'm not saying he's not smart. I'm saying that he just gets the game without being taught how it's supposed to work.

"He can make you miss just standing still because you're thinking about all the things he can do."

[Related: Bucs scramble to replace lineman Davin Joseph]





Schiano sees similarities with a player he saw regularly as head coach at Rutgers.

"I don't think it's fair to compare him to Ray [Rice], but sometimes I look at him and go, 'I remember that feeling. That looked good.' "

As a youngster, Martin was focused more on capturing the best of Jackie Chan or perfecting a break-dance move than emulating the game's top running backs. "When I was kid, tag was my game," Martin said. "I was kind of a chubby kid, but nobody could catch me … I'd watch all the Jackie Chan movies and try to perfect his moves."

Martin didn't follow football. If it wasn't tag, it was basketball, where he mimicked Michael Jordan. And if it wasn't basketball, it was Pokemon cards ("I had a little nerd streak").

View photos

Story continues