Buccaneers Without Another Injured Star vs. Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons will face a shorthanded Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense, as receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans won't play due to injuries.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans won't play Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons. / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ receiving corps has grown slimmer for Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons.

Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles ruled out receiver Mike Evans during his press conference Tuesday. Evans, who has battled a hamstring injury for the past two games, limped to the locker room in the second quarter of Monday night’s 41-31 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Evans did not return to the game, and OnSI’s JC Allen first reported Evans likely won’t return until after the team’s bye in Week 11. Tampa Bay's injury woes extended beyond Evans, as star receiver Chris Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle with 43 seconds left in a 10-point game.

The 31-year-old Evans is a crucial loss to Tampa Bay's offense, as he caught five passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns against Atlanta in the first meeting between the two teams. Across 19 career games versus the Falcons, Evans has caught 97 passes for 1,469 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Before the Week 5 matchup, Falcons defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake dubbed Evans a first ballot Hall of Fame player, citing his 10 consecutive seasons eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards.

Lake believes the 6-foot-5, 231-pound Evans challenges defenses in a variety of ways.

"He's got great size for a wide receiver," Lake said. "He has great extension, leaping ability. He catches the ball extremely well. He tracks the ball really well. He's strong and physical, so corners that are on him, he's able to big body him and almost box out and go up and get those 50-50 balls.

"So when you're throwing to Mike Evans, I bet those quarterbacks are more thinking it's probably 90-10 in his favor that he's going to catch it, not 50-50. I mean, I could go on and on."

But now, Lake won’t have to gameplan against Evans for the two sides' second meeting.

Atlanta (4-3) and Tampa Bay (4-3) will fight for the lead of the NFC South at 1 p.m. Sunday inside Raymond James Stadium.