Bucs’ week gets off to a great start ahead of key showdown vs. Patriots
The Bucs received some great injury news to start the week.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming off a much-needed bye week and now get to face a red-hot New England Patriots team in Week 10.
One of the most promising aspects of the bye is it would allow arguably the NFL’s most injured team an opportunity to not just rest up, but get some key players back for a very important back half of the season.
The Bucs did see one important player return to the practice field in starting right tackle Luke Goedeke, which is huge news for an offensive line that really struggled during the last couple of games.
Todd Bowles labels Luke Goedeke as “limited” in Wednesday’s practice
The Bucs opened Goedeke’s 21-day practice window over the weekend. Granted, this doesn’t guarantee he plays on Sunday against the Patriots, but it’s a major step in the right direction and certainly makes it a possibility.
“He was limited. It was just good to see him out there running around,” Todd Bowles told reporters after practice. “Obviously, he’s got to go through some things. We got to get in pads and he has to do quite a few things, but it was good to see him out there moving.”
Getting Goedeke back would be a major boon for the offense as a whole. He’s one of the game’s better right tackles and forms an elite bookend combo with Tristan Wirfs at left tackle. A big part of the recent issues with the Bucs offense stems from the offensive line. Sure, a lot of that has been the interior play, but Goedeke’s potential presence would help offset that, to an extent.
“It’s always good to see Luke back,” said Mayfield. “Hopefully, you know, he keeps progressing and he’s able to go but if not still have trust in Charlie to go out there and do his job like he has been doing.”
The Patriots defense is ascending and has a very good defensive front. It’s easy to see a world where the unit gives the Bucs offense issues if Goedeke isn’t on the field and it’s easy to see a world where he helps neutralize said front if he is. Thursday’s practice updates will give us a closer look at his odds of playing.
Other notable injury updates
Fans hoped to hear some positive news regarding running back Bucky Irving, wide receiver Chris Godwin, and EDGE Haason Reddick. Unfortunately, neither player was seen at practice. However, that doesn’t mean they’re automatically excluded from playing against the Patriots.
“They’re coming along,” said Bowles. “Obviously, they’re getting treatment and they train. They do a lot of stuff in the morning, so when they’re capable of coming back out there doing more, we’ll have them do more. It’s possible. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.”
Bowles later mentioned that “everybody is running at this point” and that’s a good development. He did specify that in Irving’s particular case, he’s yet to take on any contact with his injured shoulder. So it remains to be seen just where that’s at, right now.
Both Thursday and Friday will likely give the answers need to solve this puzzle. We’ll be sure to provide any and all updates once they come through.
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