TAMPA, Fla. -- When Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Jacquizz Rodgers takes the field Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, he’s expected to get his fifth start this season. It will mark the end of what’s proven to be a breakthrough season, which started with the disappointment of getting cut by the Chicago Bears in the preseason, then was threatened by a foot injury. But the 26-year-old running back came through for a team that, like him, found itself in a dire situation.
The Bucs lost two of their top two running backs, Doug Martin and Charles Sims, twice this season.