The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offense was dealt yet another brutal blow in Week 7 after wide receiver Mike Evans suffered an injury that will keep him out for an extended period of time.
Evans exited the Monday night contest against the Detroit Lions early due to a pair of injuries. The team later revealed he had suffered both a concussion and shoulder injury, the former of which was clear to see as he left the field.
However, after the game, it was revealed by head coach Todd Bowles that Evans had a broken collarbone and that he will be out for most of the rest of the season.
"He'll be out mostly toward the end of the year," Bowles said Evans. "We'll see what happens."
Evans' injury timeline has left many wondering if he'll be back at all this season. Here's what we know about that.
Will Mike Evans be back this season?
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, if Evans can avoid any setbacks during his recovery from the injury, the expectation is he'll be back by mid-December.
"If Mike Evans is out a regular timeline for this injury, it puts him back in early-to-mid December. Plenty of time for the playoffs," Rapoport reported.
The Buccaneers have two games around mid-December, with a Week 15 contest versus the Atlanta Falcons on Dec. 11 and a Week 16 contest against the Carolina Panthers on Dec. 21.
Those two games would be the ones to highlight for a potential Evans return if all goes well. So, the Bucs could get Evans back with three or four games left in the regular season.
Tampa Bay's ability to weather the storm will depend upon the continued emergence of rookie Emeka Egbuka and the health of Chris Godwin.
Godwin has missed the past two games with a fibula injury and there hasn't been an updated timeline for his return. However, based on the fact that the Bucs haven't placed him on injured reserve suggests he may not miss more than a third game.
The Buccaneers will also hope to get Jalen McMillan back. McMillan is on injured reserve with a neck injury he suffered during the preseason. There hasn't been an update on his possible return lately, but he does have the designation to return, which means the team expects him back at some point.
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