Buccaneers' Wednesday Injury Report Doesn't Look Good

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a very crowded injury report as the team enters Week 4 still looking for its first win of the season.

Visit afsport.lat for more information.

The Bucs are 3.5-point home underdogs in Week 4 against the Green Bay Packers, who are also coming into the contest as a struggling, underachieving team in desperate need of a win. 

Both teams are trying to dig out of the early hole they dug for themselves. 

Unfortunately for the Bucs, they are not a healthy team right now. 

Starting quarterback Baker Mayfield is expected to be out for at least the next three games with a dislocated thumb suffered late in last week’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. 

Wide receiver Jalen McMillan is out for 6-8 weeks with a PCL sprain in his left knee. 

While McMillan has already been placed on IR, the Bucs do not plan to do the same with Mayfield, hoping he will return before the four games he would miss if placed on IR. 

Aside from those two, Tampa released its initial injury report on Wednesday, and it is a crowded list. 

Many Not Practicing Wednesday 

The Bucs have several players who were unable to give it a go on Wednesday. 

WR Chris Godwin Jr. did not practice with an ankle injury. If he cannot play on Sunday, two of Tampa's starting receivers will be out, making it even harder for undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels.

Tight end Ko Kieft also was a non-participant with an elbow injury.

Defensively, the list of players who didn't practice is much longer and worrisome.

Cornerback Jacob Parrish missed practice for personal reasons.

Edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr., who was unable to play in Week 3, still hasn't returned to practice due to his groin and shoulder injuries. Bain was invisible during the Bucs' first two games after a dominant offseason, which caused expectations for the rookie to go through the roof. Hopefully, once Bain is healthy again, he can be the player everyone was expecting.

Outside linebacker YaYa Diaby and defensive tackle Rakeem Nunuz-Roches both missed practice as well.

If any of those three are forced to sit out against the Packers, Tampa's pass rush, which needs a boost, may be even less threatening than it has been through three games.

Limited Practice

In addition to the seven players (including Mayfield) who didn't practice on Wednesday, there were also a number who were only able to get in limited work.

Running back Bucky Irving is dealing with a glute injury, while rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter, who was the defense's best player the first two weeks before missing the Vikings game, is still not fully recovered from his shoulder injury.

Hopefully, starting the week with limited participation is a good sign for Trotter's availability against Green Bay.

Fellow linebacker SirVocea Dennis (calf) and rookie CB Keionte Scott (toe) were also limited.

Final Thoughts

Not a great injury report to start the week. Hopefully, Tampa can have as many hands on deck as possible because the team needs a win in the worst way.

We'll see if Thursday's report shows any improvement or setbacks for any of these injured players.

Read full story at source