Not that it should really come as a surprise after the earlier reports today, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will officially need to prepare for a full season without wide receiver Russell Gage.

Source: #Bucs WR Russell Gage will miss the 2023 season with the knee injury suffered today vs. the Jets.

— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) August 16, 2023

This always seemed like the likely conclusion when Gage went down without contact, but the finality of such news should still sting the Buccaneers as they plan for a season without one of their starters. 

This creates a very immediate need for the Buccaneers in an NFL that values wide receivers as much as any of the other top positions, especially on a team that has question marks on its offensive line and at quarterback.

For all the flaws of the Bucs offense, the wide receiver room was supposed to be the group that could elevate the rest of the unit by itself. While there is still some truth to this, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin do have some question marks with injuries of their own, and the room is starting to look dangerously-shallow from an experience standpoint.

Trey Palmer has been a breath of fresh air and looks like he could move into that third role, but can the Bucs really count on that during such a make-or-break season? It might make sense to find one more veteran, but sometimes that is easier said than done.

Tampa has next to no cap space and really doesn't have a ton of flexibility in the matter, but Jason Licht has made something out of nothing before, and this seems like as good a time as any to make some magic.

One way or another, the Buccaneers will want to act soon. Whether they commit to Palmer or get busy on the free agent market, the Bucs will want their quarterbacks to get as many reps as possible with the guys they will lean on the most in the regular season.

Buccaneers get bad news about important offensive starter

Not a good start to the season.

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports