Carolina Panthers insider reveals the most important player vs. Bucs

Though his overall impact on the team's success is a little overstated, Rico Dowdle has been a crucial player for the Carolina Panthers this year. He's not dragging them to wins anymore, but he absolutely did against the Miami Dolphins and Dallas Cowboys.

He's faded since then, with only one 100-yard rushing day since then. From Week 12 on, Dowdle has seen the end zone just once. He's still been impactful sometimes, but he has failed to show up sometimes as well.

According to Joseph Person of The Athletic, that absolutely cannot happen this weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Rico Dowdle tabbed as Panthers' most important player this week

Bryce Young and Tetairoa McMillan will undoubtedly bounce back from dreadful outings in Week 17. On the one hand, it literally can't get worse, and they're both good enough to pick on the Buccaneers a second time.

Despite that advantage in the passing game against a weakened Bucs' secondary, Joseph Person believes the game plan will be what it usually is: to pound the rock and keep possession of the football.

"Dave Canales will want to sustain drives against an aging Bucs defense that gets tired when it’s on the field too long. That makes running back Rico Dowdle, who was held to 29 yards on nine carries in Round 1, an important figure," Person wrote.

Dowdle has a few potential incentives this week, but regardless, he has to play better. He has just 331 yards in the past seven games, an average of 47 per game. He's also only averaging 3.4 yards per carry in that span.

Quietly, Dowdle has not been very good, and neither has Chuba Hubbard. The once-dominant running game has left a lot to be desired, and that cannot be the case this week. Sure, Young can dominate the Bucs again, but relying on that to happen is unwise.

Plus, with a defense that's not exactly the Iron Curtain, Canales' plan to keep the offense on the field for long periods of time is wise. It's just up to the Panthers, namely the offensive line and Dowdle, to uphold their end of the bargain.

Fortunately, Robert Hunt might be back this week. That should hopefully improve the run blocking and open more lanes for Dowdle and Hubbard to gash the ailing and reeling Tampa Bay defense.

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