Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette did little to leave his imprint in the team's opening game loss against the New Orleans Saints. He finally hit his strides in the following matchup against the Carolina Panthers as the Bucs won 31-17.
Fournette reportedly challenged his offensive line Sunday, pleading with them:
“Y’all give me an inch, I’ll take it a mile.”
He did as he promised after recording a total of 103 rushing yards on 12 carries along with two touchdowns scored. His 46-yard touchdown run late in the game helped seal the win for the Buccaneers which then earned the approval of his linemen.
“I loved it,” guard Ali Marpet said, via Eduardo Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. “[It was] a little bit of a burst of energy. I’m going to try to give him more than an inch, but if that’s all he needs — it got me excited [and] I think it got the rest of the offensive line excited and fired up. The best part about it is he backed it up. He brought it.”
Not only Fournette but also third-year running back Ronald Jones was able to contribute to the winning cause by way of his 23 rushing yards on 7 touches and a scored touchdown. Veteran ball-carrier LeSean McCoy also generated 26 rushing yards on 5 carries of his own.
Despite having a loaded roster, the Buccaneers will still need Leonard Fournette to be at his best if they are aiming to make a postseason run this season. The team will look to carry over their good showing as they visit the Denver Broncos on September 27.
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