For the moment, at least, Doug Martin is the NFL's leading rusher. That's uncharted territory for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Martin entered Thursday's game trailing Minnesota's Adrian Peterson by 38 yards and passed him in the first quarter.
Obviously, Martin and the Buccaneers got a jump on 30 of the NFL's 32 teams when they were featured on prime time Thursday. Martin used that early start to move past Minnesota's Adrian Peterson, who has 1,251 rushing yards through his first 13 games. The Vikings play host to the Chicago Bears on Sunday, with kickoff scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET.
Whether or not Martin maintains his lead on Peterson through the weekend – and the next-leading rusher, Carolina's Jonathan Stewart, is well behind at 989 yards – those two are set up for quite a battle in the final fortnight of the season. Martin could become the first Buccaneer ever to lead the NFL in rushing, passing or receiving yardage in a single season.
