There were few surprises on the inactive reports for Thursday night's game between the Carolina Panthers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Doug Martin is out for the Bucs, as expected, with the torn labrum he suffered last week against the Atlanta Falcons. The Buccaneers are expected to start Mike James at running back. He gets something of a break this week with Panthers defensive tackle Dwan Edwards out with a hamstring injury.
Panthers vs. Buccaneers 2013 inactives: Doug Martin, Dwan Edwards among players sitting
Doug Martin is out for the Buccaneers as expected, striking a significant blow to the Bucs’ running game. Fortunately for them, defensive tackle Dwan Edwards is out for the Panthers.
Safety Dashon Goldson and wide receiver Chris Owusu were also ruled inactive for knee and foot injuries, respectively, further depleting a banged-up Buccaneers squad. Goldson's absence could be a major blow to an already struggling secondary. He was a limited participant in practice throughout the week
Cornerback Josh Thomas was ruled out for the Panthers. He missed practice early in the week due to illness, but was a full participant Friday and was listed as probable heading into game time. Jonathan Jones of the Charlotte Observer speculates that Thomas' deactivation may been partially performance related. He played poorly against the St. Louis Rams last week. Rookie Melvin White is expected to start in place of Thomas.
Full inactives:
Carolina Panthers inactives
Dwan Edwards, DT - Hamstring
Tavarres King, WR
Marvin McNutt, WR
Josh Thomas, CB - Illness
Armond Smith, RB
Brandon Williams, TE
Sione Fua, DT
Tampa Bay Buccaneers inactives
Doug Martin, RB - Shoulder
Carl Nicks, G - Foot
Jeff Demps, RB - Groin
Dashon Goldson, S - Knee
Chris Owusu, WR - Foot
Derek Landri, DT
More from SB Nation NFL
See More:
