Get ready for RB1 Jacquizz Rodgers.
While the Buccaneers will enter "Monday Night Football" with the luxury of defending Derek Anderson and not Cam Newton, who is out for the Panthers with a concussion, they will also enter the game shorthanded on offense.
Both of their top running backs, Doug Martin and Charles Sims, are listed as doubtful for Monday night's game. And that means a player who wasn't even on the roster when the season began is set to handle the majority of the workload in the backfield alongside quarterback Jameis Winston.
The Buccaneers signed Rodgers during the second week of the season after the Bears cut him. Rodgers, who spent the first four years of his career in Atlanta before moving to Chicago last season, has never really served as a feature back. He's never recorded 100 carries in a single season or 20 carries in a single game, as he's been used more as a third-down back who's capable of catching passes out of the backfield.
He also hasn't started a game since the 2014 season.
But with Martin, who finished second in rushing yards a year ago, and Sims out, Rodgers will need to do more than just serve as a compliment. So far this season, he's averaging 5.3 yards per carry on 13 runs, totaling a nice 69 yards. He hasn't done much through the air, catching two passes for 12 yards.
He won't be in for an easy night. The Panthers' defense hasn't been the same defense of a year ago -- it allowed nearly 50 points to the Falcons -- but it still has been solid in the run game, ranking 10th with just 90.3 yards allowed per game.
At 1-3, both shorthanded teams are desperate for a win to keep up with the 3-1 Falcons in the NFC South.
