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    • Will the Buccaneers WR play this week?
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    Will the Buccaneers WR play this week?

    Online Niel Posted on

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    Things may be trending for Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the final seven weeks of the 2024 season and it’s all because a player is ready to return from injury.

    According to multiple reports, the veteran wide receiver Mike Evans is set to return from injury in Week 12 after missing each of the team’s last three games. That’s big news for a team that has recently struggled to get its passing game going.

    For the first seven weeks of the season, Buccaneers he ranked second in the NFL in dropback success rate at 53%. In the last three games before the bye, Tampa Bay has dropped to 19th with a 46.3% shooting percentage, just 0.1 percentage points better than New York Giants success rate over the same period.

    Now, the Bucs get Evans back for a Week 12 showdown with New York with a chance to start their season.

    Mike Evans injury update

    According to multiple reports, Evans will return to the Buccaneers Week 12 game against the Giants.

    The team opted to keep the veteran off injured reserve as Week 11 approaches, and the decision appears to have paid off. Evans, who is 31, said he could have played in Tampa Bay’s Week 10 matchup with the 49ers, but the team chose to play it safe.

    With seven games left in the Buccaneers’ season, Evans is 665 yards away from his 11th straight 1,000-yard season. He will resume his quest to match Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice’s 11-year streak in New York in Week 12.

    When was Mike Evans’ injury?

    Before the Buccaneers played their Week 7 “Monday Night Football” matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, they were 4-2 and tied for first in the NFC South. It was during the Week 7 game that disaster struck.

    First, Evans had to leave the game after diving to attempt a touchdown catch midway through the second quarter. The 11th-year wide receiver has been trying to work through his hamstring issues and already caught a 25-yard touchdown pass before aggravating his hamstring.

    Then the Buccaneers lost a fellow receiver Chris Godwin for the year after badly spraining his ankle in the final seconds of the game. Godwin was having a career year — he still leads the team in receptions and yards — before his season-ending injury.

    Buccaneers WR depth chart

    Here’s how the Buccaneers’ depth chart has looked over the past four weeks:

    Tampa Bay lost both Evans and Godwin to significant injuries in the Week 7 loss to the Ravens, forcing the team to rely on receivers lower on the depth chart and other pass-catchers for the final three games before the bye.

    Tight end Otto falls now leads the Buccaneers in targets this season with 70. Running backs Rachel White (41) and Bucky Irving (28) were also heavily involved in the passing game.

    Behind Godwin (62) and Evans (45), the most targeted receivers on the list were Sterling Shepard (25) and Jalen McMillan (22).

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