Buccaneers Place WR Mike Evans On NFL's COVID-19/Reserve List

Bruce Arians said wide receivers coach Kevin Garver tested positive earlier Monday, too.

Per the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, wide receiver Mike Evans has been placed on the NFL's COVID-19/Reserve list. 

We've placed WR Mike Evans on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) December 27, 2021

The news comes just hours after Bruce Arians told reporters that wide receivers coach Kevin Garver tested positive earlier that day. It's also worth mentioning that the Carolina Panthers have been dealing with COVID-19 issues all day long, so there's a good chance the Bucs' issues are part of that fallout, but that's only speculation, obviously. 

Evans is considered week-to-week due to the hamstring injury he suffered against the New Orleans Saints a couple of weeks ago, so it remains to be seen if this latest development will keep him out of Sunday's contest against the New York Jets. Evans can be cleared as quickly as the day after his positive test based off the NFL's new COVID-19 protocols, but that also requires him to be asymptomatic for at least 24 hours, so there are obviously a few hurdles he has to clear before he is available for Week 17. Evans is considered to be a vaccinated player, so he falls under a different set of guidelines when compared to unvaccinated players. 

But the question still remains as to how many players were affected by Garver's status, especially those in the wide receiver room. Only time will tell when it comes to that aspect of the story. 

Stay tuned to AllBucs for further coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and other NFL news and analysis. Follow along on social media at @SIBuccaneers on Twitter and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sports Illustrated on Facebook.