Buccaneers Safety 'Hopefully' Returning This Week Against Panthers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may be getting some reinforcements in as they look to get their playoff path corrected.

Sep 8, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Jordan Whitehead (3) reacts after a play against the Washington Commanders in the third quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Jordan Whitehead has appeared in 11 games this season in his return to the franchise he started his NFL career with.

In those 11 games he's seen some highs and some lows as the Buccaneers have proven to be a formidable team that struggles with finding consistency on a week-to-week basis.

One week, Tampa Bay is defeating the Los Angeles Chargers, a team many think of as a darkhorse in the AFC Playoffs race. The next, it's laying an egg against a Dallas Cowboys team that has nothing to play for, relatively speaking.

READ MORE: NFL Playoff Picture: Where Do the Buccaneers Stand Going Into Week 17?

This week, the Bucs host the Carolina Panthers in a game that before the season would have been viewed as near a gimme in the NFL as you can get.

But coming off a win over the Arizona Cardinals in overtime last week, the Panthers aren't the same bottom-dwelling team that started the season. So getting someone like Whitehead back for the contest would be great for the Buccaneers.

"My goal is to come back, hopefully this week," Whitehead said to media on Tuesday. "Two games left, big game, just trying to get out there (and) help my teammates out."

Here’s S Jordan Whitehead on returning from IR — he says that he can return “hopefully this week”: pic.twitter.com/Sxkxur95b0

— River Wells (@riverhwells) December 24, 2024

Whitehead has missed the requisite four games after going on injured reserve with a pectoral injury following the team's Week 12 win over the New York Giants.

On Christmas Eve, the team opened his 21-day window to return, meaning he could be back as early as this weekend against Carolina.

There's a lot of motivation for player and team to get him back out there too.

A win and a loss by the Atlanta Falcons who play the Washington Commanders on Sunday Night Football this weekend puts the Bucs back in control of their playoff destiny. However, a loss eliminates the Buccaneers from Wild Card contention and a win by the Falcons on top of it would eliminate the team altogether.

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