December 27 Updates
The Buccaneers face a must-win game on Sunday against the visiting Panthers, and they'll have to contest it without three regular contributors. On Friday, Head Coach Todd Bowles revealed three players who have already been ruled out for that game due to injuries: tight end Cade Otton, wide receiver Sterling Shepard and safety Antoine Winfield Jr.
Otton will miss a second straight game after suffering an MCL sprain against the Chargers in Week 15. He currently leads the team with a career-high 59 receptions, which have resulted in 600 yards and four touchdowns. The Bucs' top two-way tight end, Otton had played 92% of the team's offensive snaps through the first 14 games of the season. Second-year player took over that every-down role last Sunday night in Dallas and hauled in a career-high five receptions.
Shepard had emerged in the second half of the season as the team's primary third receiver alongside Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan. He has 31 receptions for 323 yards and a touchdown, plus eight carries for 69 yards. Shepard suffered a hamstring injury in Dallas to go with the foot ailment that he was already playing through.
Winfield will miss his third straight game after sustaining a knee injury against the Raiders in Week 14. A first-team AP All-Pro in 2023, Winfield has recorded 60 tackles this season along with two tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, four quarterback hits, three passes defensed and one fumble recovery that he returned 58 yards for a touchdown.
CLICK HERE for a look at the Bucs' full injury report for Week 17, which will be updated later on Friday afternoon to include Friday's practice status and game-status designations.
December 24 Updates
Safety Jordan Whitehead returned to practice with the Buccaneers on Tuesday, beginning a 21-day window during which he could be activated from injured reserve. Whitehead will not count against the team's 53-man roster limit until and unless he is activated, but that could happen as soon as this week, meaning he could potentially play against the Panthers on Sunday.
Whitehead has missed the required minimum of four games since going on injured reserve on November 29 due to a pectoral injury sustained in the Bucs' Week 12 win over the Giants. Prior to his injury, Whitehead started the first 11 games of the season and contributed 76 tackles, two tackles for loss, three passes defensed and one quarterback hit. Now in his second stint with the Buccaneers, Whitehead has played in 104 career regular season games with 100 starts, racking up 554 tackles, 31 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 11 interceptions, 45 passes defensed, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
Whitehead could become the fifth Tampa Bay player to return from an injured reserve stint this season, joining wide receiver Rakim Jarrett, defensive lineman Earnest Brown, long-snapper Evan Deckers and cornerback Jamel Dean. Wide receiver Kameron Johnson is also currently in his 21-day window for possible activation from I.R., while defensive lineman Markees Watts recently concluded his three-week window without being activated, meaning he will finish the season on injured reserve.
CLICK HERE for a full list of the Buccaneers' player personnel transactions this season.
December 20 Updates
The Buccaneers' secondary could be getting a much-needed reinforcement on Sunday in Dallas. Safety Mike Edwards, who has missed the last two games due to a hamstring injury, may be back in action this weekend for a crucial road game against the Cowboys.
Edwards got in limited practices on Wednesday and Thursday, and after Friday's practice Head Coach Todd Bowles indicated that the sixth-year defender had made significant progress in his return. Linebacker K.J. Britt is also trying to return from a two-game absence caused by an ankle injury.
"They've come along," said Bowles. "K.J. we'll wait and see on Sunday. Mike's come along. He looks like he's trending in the right direction; I'll see how he feels tomorrow."
Edwards spent his first four seasons in Tampa after being drafted in the third round in 2019. After winning a Super Bowl ring with the Buccaneers in the 2021 season, he earned another one in 2023 after signing with the Kansas City Chiefs. Edwards started this season in Buffalo but was eventually released and signed by Tennessee. When the Titans waived him a week later, it gave the Buccaneers a chance to reclaim a safety who had a well-deserved reputation as a ball hawk. Edwards played in two games, starting one, and had five tackles and a pass defensed for the Bucs before suffering his injury against Carolina in Week 13.
Bowles also said on Friday that safety Antoine Winfield Jr. is the one Buccaneer player who has been definitively ruled out for Sunday's game in Dallas. Tight end Cade Otton, who is dealing with a knee injury, is expected to be a game day decision.
CLICK HERE for a look at the Buccaneers' Week 16 injury report, which will have game-status designations added to it later on Friday afternoon.
December 19 Updates
Cade Otton led all NFL tight ends in snaps in 2023 and he hasn't seen his workload diminish much in 2024. Otton has played 856 of a possible 926 offensive snaps for the Buccaneers through 14 games, more than anybody not playing quarterback or tight end.
That means that if Otton were to be unavailable for any particular game, there would be a lot of slack for his teammates to pick. That outcome is at least within the range of possibilities this week as the third-year tight end has been unable to practice so far due to a knee injury sustained last Sunday in Los Angeles.
Otton has missed only one game in his three-year NFL career so far, and that was to attend to a family matter. This season, he has produced a career-high 59 catches for 600 yards and four touchdowns so far, and his reception total currently leads the team. Moreover, he is an important part of a surging Bucs rushing attack thanks to his blocking and dependability, which is why he never leaves the field.
If Otton can't play on Sunday in Dallas, the Bucs would turn to the trio of second-year man Payne Durham, blocking specialist Ko Kieft and rookie Devin Culp. Durham has seen his own snap count rise in the second half of the season as the offense has transitioned from mostly using "11" personnel to a lot more two-TE sets. Kieft has contributed to the rushing success, as well, while Culp has been a victim of numbers and his only been active for two games so far. Those three have combined for 643 fewer snaps than Otton and have a total of two catches between them (both by Durham), but Offensive Coordinator Liam Coen says they are collectively ready to step up if needed.
"There's a physicality…with Payne and Ko that has helped us be able to run the football in a lot of ways," said Coen. "In turn, that has helped us in the play-action game when we had to have those guys stay in in play-action and in protection. They've done a nice job."
The Buccaneers took Culp in the seventh round of this year' draft believing his size, speed and agility made him a potential big-play receiving threat in the NFL. They saw some of that in training camp and the preseason and could try to tap into it if Otton is sidelined.
"Obviously, Devin hasn't been able to do much for us this year, but if he's up and that's the way we go I think he'll answer the toll," said Coen. "I believe so. You go back and look at some of the preseason things he did well. He had a good day at practice today. If that's the case, I have a lot of faith in those guys in helping us be able to move the ball to win this game."
CLICK HERE for a detailed preview of Sunday's game in Dallas, including an injury report.
December 13 Updates
The Buccaneers will head to Los Angeles on Saturday to take on the Chargers in Week 15, but they likely won't know until Sunday if they will have the services of leading rusher Bucky Irving and versatile secondary dweller Christian Izien. Neither player practiced on Wednesday or Thursday, and following Friday's practice Head Coach Todd Bowles indicated that Izien and Irving would be listed as questionable on the injury report.
"They're questionable right now," said Bowles. "We'll see as it gets closer to the game. We may have to work them out beforehand to see how they feel."
Irving has 735 rushing yards and a team-high six rushing touchdowns, and he's averaging 5.4 yards per carry. He has also caught 36 passes for another three yards. Irving left last Sunday's game against the Raiders early due to a back injury and is also dealing with a hip ailment suffered the weekend before that in Charlotte.
Izien has been a critical asset for Bowles amid a rash of injuries in the secondary. He has played in the slot, at free safety and even at outside cornerback this season, and he manned several of those positions against the Raiders. With Antoine Winfield Jr. and Mike Edwards already ruled out for Sunday's game due to injuries of their own, Irving's availability against the Chargers, or lack thereof, will have a significant impact on how the defense lines up.
Bowles also noted that linebacker K.J. Britt has been ruled out for Sunday's game, too.
CLICK HERE to watch Coach Bowles' quick Friday update with the media.
December 12 Updates
On Thursday, the Buccaneers designated rookie wide receiver Kameron Johnson for return from injured reserve. That move opens a 21-day window in which Johnson can practice with the team without counting against the active roster limit. He can be activated to the 53-man roster at any point during those three weeks, though a corresponding move would have to be made to create a spot for him.
Johnson has been on injured reserve since Week Seven due to an ankle injury. After making the active roster as an undrafted free agent, Johnson played in four of the Bucs' first six games and had one punt return for 11 yards. He also logged one carry for zero yards. In the preseason, Johnson caught three passes for 12 yards and ran twice for 13 yards.
If Johnson returns to the active roster, he will be the fifth Buccaneer to come off injured reserve this season, joining defensive lineman Earnest Brown, cornerback Jamel Dean, long snapper Evan Deckers and wide receiver Rakim Jarrett. In addition, outside linebacker Markees Watts is currently in his 21-day practice window after being designated for return from I.R.
CLICK HERE for a complete list of the Bucs' 2024 transactions.
December 9 Updates
The Buccaneers banged-up secondary took another turn for the worse on Sunday when All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. left the game with a knee injury six minutes into the second quarter and did not return. The Bucs' defensive backfield had already lost their other starting safety, Jordan Whitehead, to injured reserve on November 29 and his immediate replacement, Mike Edwards sustained a hamstring injury in Week 13 against the Panthers' sidelining him for Sunday's game against the Raiders.
As such, the Buccaneers can hardly afford to lose Winfield for any part of the upcoming four-week playoff stretch run, but it appears that will be the case for at least half of it after an update from Head Coach Todd Bowles on Monday afternoon.
"He's got a knee sprain," said Bowles. "He'll be out a little while."
When pressed as to whether that meant multiple weeks, Bowles responded affirmatively.
"A couple weeks, yeah."
The Buccaneers play the Los Angeles Chargers this coming Sunday in California, then travel to Dallas in Week 16. If Winfield can return after that, he would be able to help the Bucs' defense in what will likely be two critical home games against NFC South opponents: Carolina in Week 17 and New Orleans in Week 18.
CLICK HERE to watch Coach Bowles' day-after-game press conference on Monday.
December 6 Updates
The Buccaneers will have some lineup changes on defense in Week 14 due to a string of injuries sustained in their Week 13 win over the Panthers.
Linebacker K.J. Britt, who has started 11 of 12 games for Tampa Bay this season, will be sidelined by an ankle injury. Safety Mike Edwards, who recently returned to his first NFL home and was quickly thrust back into the starting lineup due to an injury to Jordan Whitehead, will also be unavailable due to a hamstring strain. On Friday, Head Coach Todd Bowles ruled those two out, as well as veteran cornerback Troy Hill, who is dealing with knee and foot ailments.
In addition, outside linebacker Markees Watts, who has been on injured reserve since Week Six due to a knee injury, will not be activated for this week's game. He is in the second week of a 21-day period in which he can practice with the team before ultimately returning to the active roster.
The Bucs may have another option at safety and/or slot corner if rookie Tykee Smith can return from a knee injury that has cost him the last three games. Bowles said Smith would be worked out before the game to see if and how much he could play against the Raiders on Sunday. The Buccaneers also have Tavierre Thomas and Kaevon Merriweather available to help out at the safety position next to Antoine Winfield Jr. and could end up rotating players at the position.
"We've got packages for both," said Bowles. "Depending upon how they start the game is how we'll start the game, but all of them will play."
CLICK HERE for a detailed preview of Sunday's Raiders-Bucs tilt.
December 4 Updates
As has been their normal procedure in the latter part of the season, the Buccaneers used their practice time on Wednesday to hold a walk-through rather than a full-speed workout. It is a concession to the growing number of players dealing with injuries as the season progresses.
One of those injured players is quarterback Baker Mayfield, who had his right leg stepped in after a sack on Sunday against the Panthers. Mayfield initially feared an Achilles injury due to the level of pain but he eventually only missed two plays before returning to the field.
On Wednesday, Head Coach Todd Bowles said that Mayfield would have been "full-go" had the Buccaneers held a normal practice. Mayfield said he is dealing with soreness in the leg but that's unsurprising given how late it is in the season.
"It's part of my job just to get ready to be able to physically play," he said. "Doing my recovery stuff, everything I need to do to get ready to play. I feel decent, still a little sore but it's Week 13 or 14 in the NFL, so [you've] gotta go."
Mayfield has started all 30 games, playoffs included, since joining the Buccaneers in 2023. When Kyle Trask briefly replaced him on Sunday while he was in the sideline medical tent, it marked the first time since Week One that Mayfield had missed any offensive snaps, and those were just a pair of kneel-down plays at the end of a 37-20 route of Washington. It sounds like Mayfield will make his 31st Buccaneer start this coming Sunday against the Raiders.
CLICK HERE to hear Coach Bowles discuss Mayfield's resiliency on this week's Total Access show.
