The Tampa Bay Buccaneers suffered a big loss in many ways on Monday Night Football, losing both of their star wide receivers on their way to a 41-31 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens.
In the second quarter, All-Pro receiver Mike Evans ran a 25-yard go route to the end zone but could not come down with the ball. He had entered the game with a lingering hamstring injury and appeared to aggravate it on the play when he landed.
After Evans left the game, former Washington star tight end Cade Otton became quarterback Baker Mayfield’s favorite target. The Tumwater, Washington native had a stellar game, hauling in 8 catches on 10 targets for 100 yards, including a spectacular one-handed catch for 28 yards on a ricochet.
Otton was instrumental in head coach Todd Bowles’s comeback effort, which came up short, logging 29 of his yards in a series that set up a one-yard touchdown run by rookie running back Bucky Irving.
That came shortly after All-Pro wide receiver Chris Godwin suffered a gruesome dislocated ankle, visibly shaking his teammates.
Former All-Pac-12 wide receiver Jalen McMillan is expected to take his place and started the game off hot with an 11-yard jet sweep on fourth and one to give Tampa Bay a new set of downs on the Baltimore 25-yard line on the game’s opening drive. He set up a 25-yard touchdown from Mayfield to Evans on the very next play to put Tampa on the board first.
After the injuries, McMillan’s role in the offense ramped up. He was targeted in the end zone four plays after Evans left the game, but with the injuries, Baltimore’s defense had the ability to double-team the former third-round pick and forced a poor decision from Mayfield on a ball that was intended for McMillan in the end zone but was intercepted by cornerback Marlon Humphrey.
McMillan finished the game with 3 catches on 8 targets for a meager 15 yards, but with both Evans and Godwin out, look for both former Huskies to take on a much larger role in offensive coordinator Liam Coen’s game plan and become the top targets for Mayfield.
