The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 0-1 on the season after the NFC South franchise came up short against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1. However, nothing about the Buccaneers' Week 1 performance should give this team any hope going forward as Tampa Bay will more than likely finish toward the bottom of the league standings when all is said and done.
Nonetheless, the Buccaneers must still play a full 16-game regular-season schedule, which will require them to start someone in the backfield while it appears as though new Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians will be sticking with running back Peyton Barber as the team's starter in the backfield for Thursday evening's divisional matchup against the Carolina Panthers.
As a result of Barber's status as the team's starting running back, second-year rusher Ronald Jones will continue to serve as Tampa Bay's primary backup for at least another week.
Arians said Bucs’ RB situation won’t change Thursday, with Peyton Barber starting and Ronald Jones ready to step in, then going with the hot hand from there.
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) September 10, 2019
It is worth noting, though, that Jones led the way in Week 1's loss to the aforementioned 49ers and didn't perform too terribly in the process. Jones carried the football a team-leading 13 times for 75 yards while averaging just under six yards per carry. On the other hand, Barber rushed for a mere 33 yards on eight carries en route to averaging 4.1 yards per attempt. Jones and Barber combined to add three receptions for another 30 yards as well.
With the likes of the Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, and New Orleans Saints also residing in the NFC South division, the Buccaneers will need to find answers in a hurry as the hole will only get dug deeper as the weeks progress.
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