The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are running thin on roster depth. While the team sits at the bottom of the NFC South, injuries are hurting any chances they have of improving. As the team prepares to play the Atlanta Falcons in Week 8, they will be down two more wide receivers which could force the team to look at other options available.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, Vincent Jackson is not expected to play in Week 8 and could be out for a lengthy period of time following a knee injury. Jackson hurt his knee in the loss against the Washington Redskins and is not expected to return for multiple weeks. Rapoport clarified that this is not a season-ending issue, but it will sideline Jackson for some time now.
The Buccaneers are down to two healthy receivers. Russell Shepard has been dealing with hamstring injuries and is uncertain for Week 8 play. Louis Murphy has been lost for the season following a torn ACL. The No.3 receiver went down against the Redskins and will miss the remainder of the season. That was a big loss for the Buccaneers especially if Jackson is also out. The injuries mean Donteea Dye will step up as a starter in his rookie season.
The Buccaneers are getting Austin Seferian-Jenkins back to almost full stride after he missed time with a shoulder injury. Mike Evans is also finding his rhythm after missing time with injuries. However, they will not be enough to help Winston get wins as the Buccaneers enter a tough stretch in the schedule. Could a free agency addition help?
The Buccaneers would be wise to add a body to the roster as depth becomes a big concern for the team. The market actually has some talent lingering on it. Reggie Wayne, Hakeem Nicks and Wes Welker are all healthy and available. The Buccaneers could also look to trade for a player like Cordarrelle Patterson would could turn out to be more than a one-season rental while not costing much.
Until then, the Buccaneers will rely on Doug Martin and Charles Sims to help out while they hope to get Winston mistake free. The quarterback has struggled with inconsistencies this season. The Atlanta Falcons are not downplaying the talents of the quarterback just because he has had some struggles. He certainly has the talent to put on an improved performance in Week 8. Head coach Lovie Smith is just hopeful the injury bug does not hit Winston as well.
"As far as protecting our quarterback, we do think about that," Smith said, via ESPN.com. "We want to protect him as much as we possibly can. Limit the amount of times he runs, and just limit the amount of times that he's exposed to what those big, bad defenses are doing. But you can only do that so much."