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Tampa Bay Buccaneers News & Rumors

NFC Injury Updates: Bucs, Packers, Smith

September 23rd, 2022 at 8:23pm CST by Ely Allen

Tampa Bay knew it would be without two of its bigger playmakers in wide receiver Chris Godwin and defensive tackle Akiem Hicks this week. That is no surprise, as Godwin missed last week with a hamstring ailment and Hicks is predicted to miss a month with a foot injury. The Buccaneers were hoping to get back offensive tackle Donovan Smith this week, but he is doubtful to appear this Sunday against the Packers, according to Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network.

Smith suffered a hyperextended right elbow in Tampa Bay’s Week 1 victory over the Cowboys. Last week, the Buccaneers slotted Josh Wells in to start for Smith, but, after Wells suffered a calf injury that landed him on injured reserve in the team’s matchup with the Saints, they’ll likely turn to Brandon Walton who replaced Wells last Sunday.

It was also reported, by Buccaneers staff writer Brianna Dix, that wide receiver Julio Jones is expected to be a game-time decision, according to head coach Todd Bowles.

Here are a few other Sunday game statuses we heard about today, starting with two top receivers in Green Bay:

  • The Packers‘ top returning receiver from last year had to miss Week 1 while dealing with an ankle injury. While they got Allen Lazard back last week, he was seen limping at points of the game. Regardless, Lazard “is optimistic about playing” this week versus Tampa Bay, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. The Packers have been cautious with him in practice this week, but it’s likely been precautionary. On the other hand, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be without one of his top targets as Sammy Watkins has been ruled out with a hamstring injury, according to Field Yates of ESPN. Rookie wide receiver Christian Watson is also dealing with hamstring issues but is listed as questionable going into the weekend.
  • Vikings safety Harrison Smith is expected to miss his first game due to injury since 2016, according to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Smith did sit out two games last year on the COVID-19/reserve list and took a rest day in the 2019 season finale, but a concussion suffered in Monday night’s loss to the Eagles will likely hold him out against the Lions this week.
  • Tyler Kroft has been the man for the 49ers at tight end, starting twice to begin the season in place of the injured star, George Kittle. He has never been a strong receiving threat, but his ability to run block has made him a valuable asset to the San Francisco offense. In the team’s Week 2 win over the Seahawks, though, Kroft suffered a sprained MCL. He’s expected “to miss several weeks” because of the knee injury, but, due to new injured reserve rules, the veteran will not be placed on IR, according to David Lombardi of The Athletic. The new rules this year dictate that only eight players can be designated to return from IR, so, even though Kroft will be eligible to return after several weeks, the 49ers are choosing to save their designated to return IR spots for more valuable players who may end up sustaining injuries later on in the season. The timing of Kroft’s injury is not the worst it could possibly be as Kittle is set to return this week from injury. Kittle is mostly known for his receiving ability but is a decent run blocker in his own right and will help to vacate any deficit resulting from Kroft’s absence.
  • The Lions will be down one of their rotational defensive linemen when they play the Vikings and, according to Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, a recent surgery will hold him out for a while. Defensive lineman John Cominsky is dealing with a wrist injury that required the surgery. Cominsky may not be a household name, but, when he was put on waivers after three years of playing with the Falcons, Cominsky drew the interest of one-fourth of the league, as eight teams were intrigued enough to put in claims on the former Golden Eagle out of Division II Charleston in West Virginia. The Lions were second in the waiver order and were granted the 6-foot-5 lineman, but the Commanders, Colts, Browns, Texans, Cardinals, Vikings, and Bengals all attempted to bring him in. With Cominsky out, Lions head coach Dan Campbell suggested that the starting four defensive linemen will be backed up by the likes of Austin Bryant and undrafted rookie Demetrius Taylor.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/21/22

September 21st, 2022 at 6:10pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Houston Texans

  • Signed: OL Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/21/22

September 21st, 2022 at 5:59pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

  • Signed off Rams practice squad: DE Benton Whitley

Los Angeles Rams

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Kazee was suspended three games for violating the league’s policy on substances of abuse. After signing with the Steelers this offseason, he landed on injured reserve after the preseason. Per ESPN’s Brooke Pryor (on Twitter), Kazee will be allowed to serve his suspension while he’s on IR.

Hopkins was also suspended three games for violating the NFL’s policy on substances of abuse.

Mike Evans To Serve One-Game Suspension

September 21st, 2022 at 10:50am CST by Sam Robinson

The Buccaneers will be without Mike Evans against the Packers in Week 3. Appeals officer James Thrash upheld the one-game suspension handed to Evans for his actions in New Orleans.

This will be Evans’ second suspension. Both came after he shoved Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore during games in New Orleans. Like he did after being suspended in 2017, Evans appealed. Five years after his previous appeal effort failed, Evans will sit another game. He missed a Week 10 game against the Jets in 2017. It is safe to say the four-time Pro Bowler’s next absence will be slightly more noticeable, given the Bucs’ Tom Brady-era status as one of the league’s highest-profile teams.

For the Bucs, it will likely mean having neither Evans nor Chris Godwin available this week. Godwin continues to battle a hamstring injury, and while it is not certain Evans’ longtime tandem partner will be out, a multiweek absence was expected.

This will be an adjustment for Brady, who has been without Evans just once during his Tampa tenure. Evans missed the Bucs’ Week 16 game against the Panthers last season. While Godwin had sustained an ACL tear the previous week, the Bucs still had Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski at that point. Brown’s in-game actions the following week against the Jets led him out of the picture, but Evans had returned by that point. Gronkowski retired for a second time this offseason.

Tampa Bay played without Julio Jones in New Orleans last week. The recently signed wideout missed Week 2 with a knee injury. Jones returning against Green Bay obviously becomes a more important matter now. The Bucs have Scotty Miller and Breshad Perriman in place as their next men up. Cole Beasley officially joined Tampa Bay’s practice squad Wednesday. The 10-year veteran can be elevated ahead of the Bucs’ Week 3 game, should the team elect to do so.

Evans missed a rookie-contract game check in 2017. Although he remains attached to an extension he signed in 2018, the former top-10 pick will not miss out on too much money. Due to an offseason restructure that dropped Evans’ base salary to $1.12MM, the ninth-year receiver will lose out on just more than $62K because of this suspension.

Buccaneers Place RB Giovani Bernard, OL Josh Wells On IR

September 21st, 2022 at 9:46am CST by Sam Robinson

After injuries to veterans Giovani Bernard and Josh Wells, the Buccaneers are making roster adjustments. Both players landed on injured reserve Wednesday, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.

Ankle and calf injuries, respectively, will sideline Bernard and Wells for at least four weeks. Wells’ ailment is not believed to be season-ending, per ESPN.com’s Jenna Laine (on Twitter), but the backup tackle will be shut down for a while.

[RELATED: Bucs Add Cole Beasley To Practice Squad]

Wells started in place of injured left tackle Donovan Smith in Week 2, but the ninth-year veteran went down during the Bucs’ win over the Saints. Following Wells’ exit, the Bucs turned to third-year UDFA Brandon Walton, who had spent last season on the team’s practice squad. A Florida Atlantic alum, Walton has only dressed for two NFL games. Sunday marked his first regular-season snaps on offense.

Wells joins center Ryan Jensen and guard Aaron Stinnie on IR. Smith, who missed Week 2 with an elbow injury, remains on the team’s active roster. Smith being unable to go in Week 3 against the Packers would mark yet another new starter for a Bucs offensive line that continues to absorb injury blows. Wells, 31, has been with the Bucs as a backup O-lineman since 2019.

Although the Bucs re-signed Bernard this offseason, the veteran running back has not been used on offense through two games. Leonard Fournette and rookie Rachaad White have played in front of Bernard, whom the Bucs signed as a possible passing-down option last year. Bernard caught 23 passes for just 123 yards last season. At 30, the former Bengals running back has seen time on special teams in his second Bucs slate.

Tampa Bay promoted linebacker Kenny Young and wide receiver Kaylon Geiger to its 53-man roster to replace Bernard and Wells, Stroud adds (via Twitter). The team also added offensive lineman Justin Skule to its practice squad. Skule spent the past three years with the 49ers. While he missed the 2021 season with an ACL tear, Skule started 12 games between the 2019 and ’20 seasons. The Vanderbilt product served as Joe Staley‘s primary replacement during the latter’s 2019 finale.

Bucs’ Akiem Hicks Facing Extended Absence

September 20th, 2022 at 4:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

Akiem Hicks could be looking at an IR stint. The Buccaneers defensive lineman suffered a torn plantar fascia, and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) he will miss at least a month.

The Bucs still have most of their Super Bowl LV starters on defense, but Hicks joined as a free agent this offseason. He and Logan Ryan represent two experienced veterans now part of Tampa Bay’s talented defense. But the longtime Bears defender will be out of the mix for a while.

The foot injury forced Hicks out of action against the Saints on Sunday; he played 19 defensive snaps. This will mark a third time in four seasons in which an injury will sideline Hicks for an extended period. Groin and ankle maladies shelved the former Pro Bowler last season — a nine-game campaign — while an elbow injury limited Hicks to just five games in 2019.

Tampa Bay has second-round rookie Logan Hall as its likely top Hicks replacement. The team brought back veteran William Gholston and has nose tackle Vita Vea healthy. Hall is not a one-for-one Hicks replacement, however, with the latter weighing north of 330 pounds. In Vea and Hicks, the Bucs had a mammoth interior tandem in place. It will be an adjustment for Todd Bowles‘ defense, though Vea’s presence makes a Hicks absence easier to withstand.

Having allowed just 13 points, the Bucs lead the NFL in scoring defense. They had Hicks ticketed to fill the void created by Ndamukong Suh‘s departure. Suh had been a Bucs starter for three seasons, never missing a game. The team opted to let the All-Decade defensive tackle walk in free agency. Although Suh said he had spoken with Bucs coaches about re-signing, the team pivoted to Hicks on a one-year, $8MM deal ($6.5MM guaranteed). Suh, 34, remains unsigned.

Mike Evans Issued One-Game Suspension; Bucs WR Will Appeal

September 20th, 2022 at 2:40pm CST by Adam La Rose

SEPTEMBER 20: Evans is appealing the suspension, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The appeal will be heard Tuesday. Evans’ 2017 appeal did not lead to an overturned suspension. Considering the similarities between the 2017 incident that prompted a ban and Sunday’s Lattimore shove, Evans seeing this suspension vacated would surprise.

SEPTEMBER 19: The fallout from yesterday’s brawl in the Buccaneers-Saints game has begun. Tampa Bay receiver Mike Evans has been given a one-game suspension for his role in the altercation, the NFL announced on Monday. 

The ban was handed down by VP of football operations Jon Runyan; in a letter to Evans, he wrote in part, “Your aggressive conduct could have caused serious injury to your opponent and clearly does not reflect the high standards of sportsmanship expected of a professional.”

This marks the second time that the 29-year-old has been suspended. He was also banned for one game in 2017 after a similar incident involving he and Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, a pair which have a long history with one another within the broader Buccaneers-Saints rivalry. Both Lattimore and Evans were ejected from yesterday’s game, but the latter expressed confidence that he would not be facing supplemental discipline.

“That was terrible – [in] 2017 I didn’t even get ejected and that was really a cheap shot,” Evans said after the game, via ESPN’s Katherine Terrell and Jenna Laine. “This wasn’t. [Lattimore] punched my teammate in the face and I just pushed him to the ground.”

Evans has the option of appealing the suspension, and is expected to do so, reports ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler (Twitter link). If the ban is upheld, he will lose just over $62K in salary, a by-product of his 2022 base salary being reduced to the league minimum. That would also leave the Buccaneers even more shorthanded at the position, though, as fellow starters Chris Godwin and Julio Jones were sidelined due to injuries yesterday.

No other suspensions have been levied, but fines affecting players on both teams are likely to be announced later this week, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link). While the league continues to sort through the aftermath of yesterday’s events, attention will turn to Evans’ status as the Buccaneers prepare to play the Packers.

Buccaneers To Sign WR Cole Beasley To Practice Squad

September 20th, 2022 at 8:52am CST by Adam La Rose

Cole Beasley‘s desire to land on a contending team and Tampa Bay’s uncertainty at the wide receiver position have resulted in a deal. The veteran is joining the Buccaneers’ practice squad with the expectation that he will soon be elevated to the 53-man roster, reports Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link). 

Beasley, 33, was reported to be fielding offers last week. He is coming off of the least-productive of his three seasons in Buffalo, a campaign which still saw him make 82 catches, resulting in 693 yards and one touchdown. Overall, his Bills tenure demonstrated the durability and consistency he has become known for, making it little surprise that he was the subject of free agent interest.

Likewise, it was hardly newsworthy that the former UDFA was remaining patient on the open market while eyeing a spot on a Super Bowl-caliber team. Garafolo notes that Tom Brady made a push for Tampa Bay to add another veteran, and that Beasley was a preferred target of his. Beasley could see immediate playing time, given the team’s current lack of availability at wideout.

Both Chris Godwin and Julio Jones are nursing injuries which kept them sidelined for Tampa’s Week 2 games against the Saints, leaving their status for Week 3 uncertain. The same is also true of Mike Evans, who is appealing the one-game suspension he was issued yesterday for his involvement in the latest altercation between he and Marshon Lattimore. If he were to lose the appeal, Tampa could face the Packers on Sunday without all three starters.

In the absence of Godwin in particular, Beasley could find himself seeing a notable workload in the slot. He, along with Russell Gage, Breshad Perriman and Scotty Miller would constitute the pass-catching array available to Brady in at least the short-term. The latter in particular has been thought to be on the roster bubble dating back to the end of training camp, and played only a rotational role on Sunday despite the Buccaneers’ injuries.

This deal will surely come in at a far lower figure than the $7.6MM Beasley averaged per season with the Bills. Still, it could prove to be a fruitful investment for the team, and a rewarding commitment on his part.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/17/22

September 17th, 2022 at 7:00pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves around the league, including practice squad elevations for tomorrow’s action:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

  • Promoted from practice squad: CB Daryl Worley, WR Raleigh Webb

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

New York Jets

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Bucs WR Chris Godwin Could Miss Weeks

September 16th, 2022 at 2:49pm CST by Ely Allen

SEPTEMBER 16: As expected, Godwin is out for the Bucs’ Week 2 game. Smith is doubtful to suit up against the Saints. Wells would start in Smith’s place if he is unable to go, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com notes.

SEPTEMBER 12: Tampa Bay wide receiver Chris Godwin‘s return from injury has hit another snag, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Godwin’s most recent injury is not considered to be major, but the 26-year-old is still expected to “be sidelined a few weeks.” 

Godwin’s 2021 season ended too early after he suffered a torn ACL and sprained MCL in a Week 15 loss to the Saints. He made an impressively quick recovery to return in time for the Buccaneers’ season opener, but his comeback season hit a bit of a hurdle in just the first half of play in 2022.

Godwin had to awkwardly contort his body to catch a low pass in the second quarter last night. When getting up off the sideline, Godwin came up with a limp. Luckily for Godwin, it appears the injury is not an extension of his knee issues from before. Unluckily for Godwin, the hamstring injury still may delay a full comeback for another week or so.

Tampa Bay planned for this possibility, signing Julio Jones to a one-year, $6MM deal and former Falcons wide receiver Russell Gage to a three-year, $30MM contract in the offseason. Adding those two alongside star receiver Mike Evans sets the Buccaneers up for success in the passing game, especially with holdovers Breshad Perriman, Scotty Miller, and Jaelon Darden lurking further down the depth chart.

The Buccaneers also saw left tackle Donovan Smith leave the game and not return to the field after injuring his arm. Smith reportedly suffered a hyperextended elbow on his right arm, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Head coach Todd Bowles told the media that the length of Smith’s absence “will be a pain tolerance issue.”

It appears that, until Smith can tolerate playing with the pain, the Buccaneers will have to add him to their growing list of injured lineman, joining Aaron Stinnie and Ryan Jensen. For any time he misses, Tampa Bay will rely on backups Josh Wells, Fred Johnson, and Brandon Walton.

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