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Mike Evans was the only Bucs player not practicing today. Bruce Arians said he is “day to day.” He missed yesterday’s bonus practice too. We’ll know the nature of the injury when the injury report comes out today.
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) September 9, 2020
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be without one of their best players in their season opener against the New Orleans Saints. Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians confirmed Wednesday that star wide receiver Mike Evans missed practice while managing a soft-tissue injury, and his status is very much in doubt — going so far as to say that the call will “come down to the wire” as to whether Evans suits up for Sunday’s kickoff.
Evans has had a strong training camp by all accounts, meshing well with new quarterback Tom Brady. He caught 67 passes for 1,157 yards and 8 touchdowns last season (averaging 17.3 yards per catch) and earned his third Pro Bowl nod.
He has also had a tremendous rivalry with top Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who held Evans without a catch in their first 2019 meeting (Lattimore missed the second game with an injury). Evans has averaged 80.7 receiving yards per game in his six-year NFL career, but he’s reached that total just three times in 11 games against the Saints.
It’ll be a bummer if he can’t suit up on Sunday, though it definitely helps the Saints’ chances of winning. But Lattimore’s clashes with Evans are always entertaining, and it would be great to add another chapter to that story. We should learn more once the Saints-Buccaneers injury report is updated later this week, but Arians was very clear to note that this situation may not be resolved one way or another until just before kickoff.
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