Football is a violent sport. All of us who enjoy the game understand that these players put their bodies on the line all for the sake of the game. It can be scary when players suffer more extreme injuries and Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans were reminded of that when wide receiver Jalen McMillan suffered a neck injury in the latest preseason game that will force him to miss time this season.
Neck injuries are no joke and it was understandable if Bucs fans wondered if this injury could be the end of McMillan's football career. Head coach Todd Bowles addressed those concerns during his press conference on Tuesday. Fortunately, the injury does not appear to be career-threatening, which allows everyone to take a huge sigh of relief.
Todd Bowles finally clears air on Jalen McMillan’s frightening injury
While it sucks that McMillan is going through this injury, the good news is that it won't be the end of his career and he'll hopefully have a full recovery. The bad news is that he's dealing with this major injury and that will most definitely impact the Bucs' wide receiver room.
With McMillan now slated to miss an extended period of time and Chris Godwin not activated off the PUP list, the Bucs will now be counting on Mike Evans, rookie Emeka Egbuka, and Tez Johnson to carry the load as the starting trio. It also has big implications for Trey Palmer, who will likely make the roster now that the Bucs have multiple injuries ahead of him on the depth chart.
Thankfully, Tampa is loaded at the position and Baker Mayfield should have no problem connecting with the healthy receivers he has and putting up points. Evans is going to be his usual self, Egbuka has looked downright lethal this summer, and Johnson, while a rookie himself (and a seventh-round one at that) has done enough to endear himself to the coaching staff.
Not having McMillan or Godwin is tough but the Bucs should be okay. Let's just hope that McMillan makes a full recovery and then can rejoin the offense and pick up where he left off as a rookie a season ago.