Arians: Buccaneers don't need a Gurley or Johnson in backfield

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' backfield lacks star power, but head coach Bruce Arians doesn't have an issue with a committee approach.

"I like our backfield. I think it's (an) OK backfield. There's not a David Johnson or a Todd Gurley. But you don't need one," Arians said, per Ira Kaufman of JoeBucsFan.

Peyton Barber sits atop the Bucs' depth chart, with second-year back Ronald Jones, who's looking to rebound from a disappointing rookie season, next in line. The likes of Andre Ellington and Dare Ogunbowale are set to fight it out for a backup role.

The Bucs refrained from signing a running back in free agency despite players like Le'Veon Bell, Tevin Coleman, and Mark Ingram available on the open market.

For Arians, though, it's a position that doesn't require significant resources to be productive.

"I mean (sigh), I don't overpay for that position," said Arians. "David Johnson came in as a rookie, lit it on fire. You just got to find the right guys to fit what you want to do."

Only nine teams will spend less on running backs in 2019 than the Bucs, whose $5.94-million bill for the position is a shade over one-third of the Buffalo Bills' league-leading mark, according to Over The Cap.

Tampa Bay will likely be hoping the switch to Arians' offense will be enough to kickstart the ineffective ground game from a year ago. In 2018, the team's rushing attack ranked 29th in yards per game and 31st in yards per carry, and its longest rush all season was an NFL-worst 28 yards.

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