The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are putting the finishing touches on their preparations for their Week 7 contest with the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football. Ahead of the game, the team received some crushing news on Sunday involving former All-Pro running back Doug Martin.
News came out that Martin had died on Saturday at the age of 36, but there weren’t many details on what led to his tragic passing. On Monday, some of those details came to light, and they paint the picture of a troubling situation that quickly caught the attention of fans everywhere who were mourning the death of the former NFL star.
Doug Martin was in Police Custody at the Time of His Death
Martin was selected by the Buccaneers with the No. 31 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, and he immediately announced himself to the league with a dominant rookie campaign that saw him rush for 1,454 yards and 11 touchdowns. Martin earned a Pro Bowl selection as a result of his strong play, and it seemed like he was on his way to becoming one of the top running backs in the league.
The following two seasons were a struggle for Martin, but he enjoyed a bounce-back campaign in 2015, when he ran for 1,402 yards and six scores. Martin earned his second Pro Bowl selection, in addition to a spot on the All-Pro First Team. However, injuries and inconsistent production marred Martin again the following two seasons, which led to his time with the Bucs coming to an end after the 2017 season.
Martin would spend the 2018 campaign with the Oakland Raiders before calling it a career. Since then, Martin has largely remained out of the spotlight, but his sudden death has changed that. The new details of Martin’s passing indicate that he was in police custody as a suspect in a burglary case before he ultimately ended up being found unresponsive after suffering an unspecified medical emergency.
“Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders star running back Doug Martin has been identified as the suspect who died in Oakland Police Department custody on Saturday after suffering an unspecified medical emergency,” Henry Lee and Andrew Fortin-Caldera wrote for “Fox 2 KTVU.”
“Sources confirmed to KTVU on Sunday evening that Martin, 36, died in a hospital after he became unresponsive following his arrest by OPD officers who were responding to reports of a possible break-in.”
Buccaneers Mourn Doug Martin’s Death Before Week 7 Action
GettySome troubling details of former Buccaneers’ running back Doug Martin’s death have emerged
There are still more details to come from Martin’s death, but regardless, the Buccaneers are going to mourn his passing ahead of their upcoming game. At his peak, Martin was one of the best players at his position in the league, and he still owns several of the best individual performances from a running back in NFL history.
On the field, Tampa Bay will have to shift its focus to its upcoming matchup with Detroit quickly, as this game could end up being wildly important for both sides. The Bucs appear to be getting healthy ahead of this contest, which is big because the Lions will be very motivated to get back in the win column after suffering a tough Week 6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Kickoff for this game is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Monday night.
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