Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard sprained his MCL and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The good news is that the Bucs are coming up on their bye week, so Howard could wind up missing only one game if he heals quickly.
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Howard, the No. 19 overall pick in last year’s draft, has impressed despite having to share tight end duties with Cameron Brate. The Bucs, naturally, will lean a bit more on the the 27-year-old for however long Howard is out. They also have Antony Auclair and Alan Cross on the roster, so they don’t necessarily have to bring in an extra tight end.
In his four games, Howard has eleven catches for 222 yards and a touchdown. Last year, Howard found the end zone six times and had 26 grabs for 432 yards.