Mike Evans (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
After learning that Chris Godwin will be out for the rest of 2024, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers received another difficult injury update on fellow superstar wide receiver Mike Evans.
Chris Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle late in the Bucs’ loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night and will miss the rest of the year. Mike Evans, who tried playing through a hamstring injury on Monday night, re-aggravated it in the second quarter and did not return.
According to JC Allen of Sports Illustrated, the 31-year-old wideout will miss at least the next three games with the hamstring injury. The Buccaneers have a bye in Week 11 and will hopefully have Evans back for their Week 12 road game against the New York Giants.
The Buccaneers host the NFC South rival Atlanta Falcons at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday. For Week 9, they’ll visit the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in a Super Bowl 55 rematch.
The Buccaneers will return home to host the reigning NFC champion San Francisco 49ers before their bye week.
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Through his first seven games of 2024, Mike Evans caught 26 passes for 335 yards and six touchdowns. Evans’ streak of 1,000-yard seasons will be seriously jeopardized if he misses multiple games.
The 2014 first-round pick has posted over 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first 10 seasons, an NFL record. The 1,255 yards Evans posted in 2023 were his highest since the 2018 campaign.
Buccaneers Are In Trouble Without Mike Evans & Chris Godwin
Bucs fans may recall that Evans and Godwin both missed time in the 2021 season, but Tom Brady still had Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown as his playmakers. Baker Mayfield, unfortunately, doesn’t have any pass-catching weapons that come close to impacting games like Evans and Godwin.
So it’s already hard to envision the Buccaneers hanging around in the playoff race without their two best receivers, especially with a difficult schedule looming.
NFL Fans Are Destroying Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles For His Foolish Decision That Cost Superstar WR Chris Godwin His Entire Season For No Reason At All
Todd Bowles and Chris Godwin (Photos by Getty Images)
NFL fans are ripping on Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles for playing star wide receiver Chris Godwin in garbage time before the latter suffered a gruesome ankle injury in Monday night’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
Todd Bowles opted to keep his starters on offense out with 1:34 remaining and his team down 41-31. Baker Mayfield completed a 21-yard pass to Godwin at the Tampa 39, who unfortunately suffered a horrific ankle injury on the play.
The 28-year-old Godwin was down for several minutes and had to be carted off. Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Bowles said after the game that Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle.
The Bucs also lost fellow superstar wideout Mike Evans in the second quarter with a hamstring injury. Evans suffered the injury as he was falling to the ground after Mayfield missed him on a pass to the end zone.
Todd Bowles received immense criticism from fans for keeping Godwin in the game late, even though the Ravens had the game in the bag:
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Todd Bowles received immense criticism from fans for keeping Godwin in the game late, even though the Ravens had the contest in the bag:
Godwin is the Buccaneers’ leading receiver with 50 receptions for 576 yards and five touchdowns. The Super Bowl 55 champion is in his contract year and could hit free agency for the first time in his career next March, so there’s a real possibility that he has already played his last game with Tampa.
Playoff Hopes For Todd Bowles & Buccaneers Now In Jeopardy
With Godwin and Evans injured, the Bucs’ playoff hopes suddenly took a significant blow. As good as Mayfield has been in Tampa, almost no QB can get through a tough schedule like the Bucs’ without their two superstar wide receivers.
If Tampa Bay loses to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Kirk Cousins’ squad will have swept the season series. And with a rash of injuries to go along with their miserable schedule, it’d be hard for the Bucs to sneak into the postseason.
