HEAD COACH TODD BOWLES

(On which players are ruled out for Sunday against New York)

"Tykee Smith is the only who's out right now."

(On the status of Smith's knee injury)

"He just reaggravated it, I guess."

(On LT Tristan Wirfs and if he might play on Sunday)

"We want to be smart and make sure he's okay for the rest of the way. He's getting a little better day by day. We'll see. It's going to go right up until Sunday for him."

(On if S Mike Edwards is up-to-speed with the defense)

"Not all the way, but for the most part he had a lot of recall from when he was here before and things. He's learned some new things. He looked good."

(On how the team handled this week mentally following the Bye)

"I thought it was good for them to get a week off, mentally, and step back and see the things we can do better. We see the things, as coaches and players, we can do better. I thought they handled it well."

(On how he wants his team to be, mentally, down the stretch run)

"Just be in the moment. We can't look ahead; we can't look behind us. We can only correct what's going on today. We can correct tomorrow, tomorrow. Just be in the moment, take care of what we've got to take care of, and take it day by day."

(On where CB Troy Hill might line up if he plays)

"He'll be both [slot and outside cornerback]. He can do both."

(On if WR Mike Evans will be on a snap count for this week)

"We'll play him as long as he's healthy and fresh. If he needs to be in there, he'll be in there, but we'll get him out when we have to."

(On how CB Zyon McCollum looked in practice today)

"He looked pretty good."

(On if McCollum didn't practice earlier in the week because the team wanted to test him closer to game time)

"No, he needed to be held out earlier in the week."

WIDE RECEIVER MIKE EVANS

(On missing the last few games with a hamstring injury)

"It hurt to see your team out there fighting in really tough, close games that we could have won. I wish I could [have been] out there to help them. I'm excited for this week."

(On how he feels physically)

"I feel really good. Obviously, the Bye Week helped, but I feel better than I did going into the Ravens game. That's a good sign."

(On how much the return of himself and CB Jamel Dean will help lift the team)

"We were talking about that during rehab. We were out here running, working really hard to try and get back…We know how important this stretch is of the season, so we made it a point to really work and make sure that we're back and hopefully help the team win."

(On if he has any concerns about reaggravating his injury)

"No, this week definitely built my confidence, and last week, going through all the conditioning I had to do. I feel really good. Like I said, I feel better than I did going into the Ravens game. I was a little hobbled going into that game. I probably should have sat that one out, but I always try to tough it through. This time off definitely helped me, so I'm confident."

(On extending his streak of consecutive 1,000-yard seasons)

"It's there. Obviously, it's going to be tough. It's something that…Obviously, I'm thinking about a lot of other people. I'm just thinking about winning – playing winning ball. Things will happen. I'm trying to play and help the team win."

(On the team's mentality before the 'home stretch' of games)

"We're not trying to take anything for granted. We're trying to win one game, one week at a time and do everything that we possibly can to make sure that we're successful on Sunday."

(On Tampa Bay's recent success in late-season playoff pushes)

"It's something that we want to be good at, because the season has been unfortunate and unfortunate things happen in life and in football. It's a very brutal game and injuries are going to happen. We're definitely trying to hit our stride right now."

(On the young players that stepped up in his absence)

"It showed that we have depth and guys stepped up and really made plays. Cade [Otton] was already making plays, and he made even more. Bucky [Irving], Rachaad [White], all those guys were making a lot of plays, and I wish I could have been out there with them. Obviously, Chris [Godwin] definitely wishes he could have been out there."

(On if he likes playing at MetLife Stadium)

"I like it. I like it. I prefer grass over turf but whatever field it is, we've got to play on it."

-BUCCANEERS-