TAMPA, Fla. — Barring any unforeseen improvement to his injured hamstring, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans‘ season is over after 13 games, a source told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Evans suffered a pulled hamstring in the Bucs’ 38-35 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
The injury came at the end of the first quarter on a 61-yard catch as Evans was racing past Pierre Desir for a touchdown. He attempted to walk off the injury before collapsing in pain in the end zone. After the game, coach Bruce Arians said his prognosis was “not good” and “he’d be shocked” if Evans made it back before the end of the season.
On Monday, however, Arians was cautiously optimistic.
“They’re going to let it bleed out. He was a quick healer when he had it in the spring,” Arians said. “I would be very doubtful for this week.”
Justin Watson, who caught a 17-yard touchdown Sunday in the first significant action of his career, is expected to take Evans’ spot.
Evans’ greatest strength, aside from his “above the rim” style of play, has been his availability. In his five previous seasons, he’s only missed three games and has never missed more than one game per season.
His loss hurts the Bucs’ chances to finish the season with a winning record. The team’s playoff hopes ended Sunday with the Minnesota Vikings’ win over the Detroit Lions.
This season, Evans joined Hall of Famer Randy Moss as the only two players in NFL history to reach 1,000 receiving yards in each of their first six seasons.