Bucs WR Mike Evans Out For Season
DEC. 11: This is not surprising given the earlier reports and the fact that the Bucs are out of playoff contention, but Evans is expected to be shut down for the season, as Laine reports.
DEC. 9: The Buccaneers are dealing with injuries to some of their top offensive players, and it sounds like one of them will struggle to return this season. Coach Bruce Arians told reporters that wideout Mike Evans will miss at least a few weeks as he recovers from his hamstring injury.
“It’s not good,” Arians said (via ESPN’s Jenna Laine). “I’ll be shocked if Mike makes it back before the last week.”
Evans suffered the injury on his 61-yard touchdown in the first quarter of yesterday’s win over the Colts. The receiver initially fell to the turf in pain before limping to the sideline. Fortunately, Laine tweets that there’s no tear in the hamstring, and Evans is just dealing with a pull. The 26-year-old is having another standout season, hauling in 67 receptions for 1,157 yards and eight touchdowns. Justin Watson filled in for Evans, with the former fifth-rounder snagging his first career touchdown.
Meanwhile, Jameis Winston suffered a hairline fracture of his thumb. The quarterback managed to finish the game, throwing for a career-high 456 yards and four touchdowns (to go along with one rushing touchdown… and four interceptions). Arians implied that Winston would likely sit out practice this week but probably won’t miss any games.
“They X-rayed his thumb,” Arians said. “He’s got a little-bitty fracture. Nothing serious. He was able to get his strength back to come back in.”
Ryan Griffin played a series while Winston was sidelined. The Tulane product would likely get the start if Winston misses any time.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/10/19
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-signed DL Caraun Reid
- Placed on IR: DL Rodney Gunter
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted from practice squad: OT Mitch Hyatt
- Placed on IR: WR Cedrick Wilson
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: LB Dakota Allen, C Tyler Gauthier
- Placed on IR: LB Jake Ryan
Miami Dolphins
- Signed off New England’s practice squad: DB Nate Brooks
- Signed off Tennessee’s practice squad: LB Jamal Davis
- Claimed off waivers from Packers: OT Adam Pankey
- Placed on IR: CBs Ryan Lewis and Ken Webster
- Waived: RB Zach Zenner
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Promoted: WR Ishmael Hyman
Washington Redskins
- Suspended: CB Simeon Thomas (four games)
Interestingly Dallas’ hand was forced with Hyatt, as they promoted the offensive lineman because another team was trying to poach him away, a source told Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). He’s a rookie UDFA from Clemson. Elsewhere, the Dolphins are scooping up players from other teams left and right as they build for 2020.
2020 NFL Draft Order As Of Week 15
With 14 full weeks of the NFL season in the books, the 2020 draft order is beginning to take shape. Here’s the rundown of where things would stand if the 2019 season ended today:
1. Bengals: 1-12
2. Giants: 2-11
3. Redskins: 3-10
4. Dolphins: 3-10
5. Lions: 3-9-1
6. Cardinals: 3-9-1
7. Jaguars: 4-9
8. Falcons: 4-9
9. Jets: 5-8
10. Chargers: 5-8
11. Broncos 5-8
12. Panthers 5-8
13. Eagles 6-7
14. Raiders 6-7
15. Colts 6-7
16. Buccaneers 6-7
17. Browns 6-7
18. Raiders (via Bears) 6-7
19. Titans 8-5
20. Jaguars (via Rams) 8-5
21. Cowboys 6-7
22. Dolphins (via Steelers) 8-5
23. Dolphins (via Texans) 8-5
24. Vikings 9-4
25. Bills 9-4
26. Chiefs 9-4
27. Packers 10-3
28. Seahawks 10-3
29. Patriots 10-3
30. Saints 10-3
31. Ravens 11-2
32. 49ers 11-2
NFC South Injury Notes: Cappa, Little, Lindstrom, Logan
The Buccaneers will be without starting right guard Alex Cappa this week, according to Jenna Laine of ESPN. Cappa sustained an elbow injury in Tampa Bay’s game against the Jaguars this past Sunday. Head coach Bruce Arians removed Cappa from the game in hopes that the precaution could allow Cappa to play this week, but unfortunately the injury is just too severe.
Veteran offensive lineman Earl Watford is behind Cappa on the depth chart and is expected to start in his place against the Colts. A six-year veteran, Watford has played all across the line, but is primarily an interior lineman. An injury earlier in the year forced Watford to start in place of Cappa for two games, so this will not be entirely unfamiliar territory for Tampa’s o-line.
Here’s some more injury notes from the NFC South:
- Panthers tackle Greg Little was ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Falcons with an ankle injury, per Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic. While Little was selected with the 37th pick in this year’s draft by Carolina to immediately jump into their rotation along the line, injuries have limited him to only four appearances on the season. Little can play either tackle spot, but was listed as the team’s top left tackle on the depth chart. Fellow rookie Dennis Daley will likely return to the starting lineup in his place.
- Rookie offensive guard Chris Lindstrom will return to the field for the first time since Week 1 for the Falcons. According to D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta is activating Lindstrom from the injured reserve to start this week against the Panthers. The Falcons focused on solidifying their offensive line through the draft last offseason, selecting Lindstrom with the 14th overall pick and tackle Kaleb McGary later in the first round. Lindstrom, however, has been out since injuring his foot in the season opener and the offensive line has struggled mightily, allowing 38 sacks on the season.
- Buccaneers running back T.J. Logan broke his thumb during practice and will be out for the remainder of the season, according to Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times. Logan has played a couple dozen offensive snaps on the season, accruing 23 yards from scrimmage. His primary role though, is as the team’s punt and kickoff returner. This season, Logan averaged 9.5 yards per return on 13 punt returns and 20.8 yards per return on 13 kick returns. Jenna Laine of ESPN reports that Justin Watson and Sean Murphy-Bunting will share punt return duties while Dare Ogunbowale handles kick returns in Logan’s absence.
Buccaneers Sticking With Ronald Jones II
Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians told reporters that running back Ronald Jones II will remain the team’s starter even amidst his struggles, according to Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com. Jones was benched during Week 13 for missing a blitz pickup and was replaced by Peyton Barber.
A second round pick by Tampa Bay in the 2018 NFL Draft, Jones spent all of his rookie season buried on the Bucs depth chart behind Barber-who started all 16 games last season. However, in a more prominent backup role this season, Jones clearly outperformed Barber and has been the team’s starter since Week 9. Jones has yet to translate his early season success, when he averaged 4.24 yards per carry, to the starting lineup, averaging just 3.29 yards per carry since. His struggles in pass protection though, seemed to be the final straw.
Barber and Jones have received a nearly identical number of carries this season (125 for Jones and 122 for Barber), but Tampa has remained committed to playing the hot hand regardless of who was in the team’s starting lineup. Still, at least for now, Jones remains the top running back on the Buccaneers depth chart.
Bruce Arians Won’t Commit To Jameis Winston Beyond 2019
While Bruce Arians said in November that Jameis Winston had a “really good chance” of landing a Buccaneers extension, if he played well down the stretch, the first-year Tampa Bay HC will not fully commit to it.
Asked Wednesday if Winston is in the franchise’s post-2019 plans, Arians said (via Jenna Laine of ESPN.com) he will push that response until the end of the season. Winston’s contract expires at season’s end. Tampa Bay’s front office has not made a decision on Winston yet, Laine notes. Though it certainly helps that the GM who drafted Winston, Jason Licht, recently signed a contract extension.
“I’m gonna pass on that one,” Arians said. “I’m gonna wait until the end of December. … There’s been really, really, really good and there’s been some really, really bad. I’m gonna pass until it’s over and then we’ll make a decision.”
Turnover-prone throughout his career, Winston has thrown a career-high 20 interceptions this season. A former Heisman Trophy recipient, Winston has committed an NFL-most 101 turnovers since 2015 but has also thrown 22 touchdown passes this season.
By not extending the 25-year-old quarterback, the Bucs would obviously be set to start over at the game’s premier position. If the season ended today, Tampa Bay would hold the 13th overall pick in next year’s draft.
NFL Workout Updates: 11/26/19
Got a whole lot of workout updates to pass along:
Carolina Panthers
- DL Woodrow Hamilton, DL Stacy McGee, DL Jay-Tee Tiuli
Green Bay Packers
- OL Cody Conway, LB Joe Dineen, OT Antonio Garcia, OL Tyler Jones, OL Marquez Tucker
Jacksonville Jaguars
Los Angeles Chargers
New Orleans Saints
- C Josh LeRibeus, OT Michael Ola, OL Bryan Witzmann
New York Jets
- LB Garret Dooley, LB Nicholas Grigsby, LB Gimel President
Seattle Seahawks
- TE Keenen Brown, TE C.J. Conrad, DB Jayson Stanley
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Extra Points: Colts, Dolphins, JPP, Broncos
The Colts are expecting Devin Funchess to return soon, but head coach Frank Reich didn’t want to say anything definitive when talking with reporters on Monday.
“Yeah, we’re gonna monitor him as we go,” Reich said (via Andrew Walker of the team’s website). “You know, we’ve already talked about his injury a bunch; I mean we’ve gotta make sure that thing’s 100 percent healed, so we’ll monitor it this week and see how it goes.”
Reich did note that wideout T.Y. Hilton didn’t suffer a setback with his calf injury during Thursday’s night loss to the Texans, and he also revealed that receiver Parris Campbell could return this week from a fractured hand. Running back Marlon Mack won’t play this weekend against the Titans, according to the head coach.
Let’s check out some more notes from around the NFL…
- The Dolphins will likely be on the hunt for wide receiver help, according to ESPN’s Cameron Wolfe (via Twitter). Jakeem Grant (ankle) and Albert Wilson (rib) both suffered injuries during Sunday’s loss to the Browns, leaving the team with only two healthy receivers in DeVante Parker and Allen Hurns. Head coach Brian Flores noted that he’s uncertain if Grant or Wilson would end up missing the rest of the season due to their injuries (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald).
- Buccaneers linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul played 76-percent of his team’s defensive snaps this weekend, earning him another $600K. As Greg Auman of The Athletic tweets, the veteran has already earned $3MM in bonuses in five games, and he could earn another $3MM through his team’s final five games. Pierre-Paul has a $3MM base salary this season.
- Take this for what it’s worth, but Vic Fangio told reporters that Broncos quarterback Drew Lock could “possibly” be on the roster this Sunday and could “possibly” start vs. the Chargers (via Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post on Twitter). The second-round rookie has been on the IR since September, but he was designated to return earlier this month.
- Former NFL running back Karlos Williams has signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL, the team announced on Twitter. Williams ran for 517 yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie, but he was later slapped with three separate suspensions. The 26-year-old was reinstated from his indefinite suspension last February, and he’s finally found his next gig.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/18/19
Today’s practice squad updates:
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: WR Amara Darboh, WR Quadree Henderson, RB Ralph Webb
- Released: LB Sutton Smith, WR Terry Wright
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: TE Matt Sokol
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Released: DT Terry Beckner
Injury Updates: Mack, Tagovailoa, Winston
The latest key injury updates:
- The Colts picked up a big win over the Jaguars on Sunday, but they’ll be without a key part of their offense for at least a little while. Running back Marlon Mack fractured his hand in the win over Jacksonville, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). Rapoport says that Mack won’t play on Thursday night in a key divisional game against the Texans, and that “it’s up in the air beyond that.” Mack had been the team’s workhorse on offense, regularly garnering 20+ carries. Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins will both see an uptick in work in the meantime.
- Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is done for the year with a hip injury, and there were instant fears that it could put his career in jeopardy. It’ll be a while before we know one way or the other, but the program released a new statement Sunday night that again expressed optimism. Tagovailoa is being transported to Houston to undergo surgery on his hip Monday, team surgeon Lyle Cain said in a statement, via Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News (Twitter link). Cain said that they “anticipate a full recovery,” which is great news.
- Bengals receiver Auden Tate went down with a scary neck injury and had to be carted off the field, but fortunately it looks like he’s going to be alright. Tate had rejoined to team and was on their flight back from Oakland, a source told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link). Pelissero said all tests were negative and that while he’ll be evaluated again tomorrow, “all signed” indicated that he “avoided major injury.” With A.J. Green still sidelined, Tate has been playing a huge role on offense for Cincy as they still search for their first win of the season.
- Jameis Winston picked up a left ankle injury in the Buccaneers’ loss to the Saints, and he was limping pretty badly toward the end of the game. Speaking to the media after the loss, head coach Bruce Arians said that he was about to go to backup Ryan Griffin, and that he should’ve, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Winston was able to convince Arians to let him go back in, but the head coach apparently regretted the decision. Winston told reporters after the game that he’ll be alright moving forward.