Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles has spoken on their injury issues at wide receiver amid setbacks to Mike Evans,Chris Godwin, Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan through the first half of the season – revealing that McMillan actually has a broken neck.
The second-year wide receiver had an impressive first year in the league with eight touchdowns and was looking to become a key figure on the Buccaneers offense with Baker Mayfield at quarterback, who is playing at an MVP level.
And with Evans sustaining a significant injury himself, Tampa Bay has needed another receiver to step up alongside impressive rookie Emeka Ebguka.
McMillan sustained an injury in preseason after landing awkwardly after a catch, although it did not appear too serious at the time as he got up and walked off after the hit.
But Bowles has told reporters that McMillan’s injury is much worse than anyone would have expected, after suffering multiple broken bones in his neck.
The head coach said: “It’s just a matter of the bones healing the right way. And those are such difficult bones to judge inside the neck, and I’m not in the medical profession, but he’s coming along. I think he’s in good spirits. And I think he’s getting a lot better, I just don’t know how close.”
He added: “He’s getting better. But necks are not like ankles or arms, where you see progress — where you can lift on them and work them out while you’re still in a brace.
“And you can say, ‘Oh, he looks good today’. He’s getting stronger. He’s getting faster.’ It’s a neck injury. And those, like you said, it’s a life thing if it doesn’t heal the right way.
“So [team doctors] are saying it’s healing the right way. They’re saying he’s coming along. He’s feeling better. He’s all similes. I don’t know what that means, honestly. Because again, until he puts on a helmet and starts working out and everything else, you just don’t know.”
At this point, McMillan’s injury does not appear to be career-threatening with the hope being that he can return to the team this season.
However, should his injury take considerably longer to heal than is expected, or should he suffer any kind of setback, it could lead to questions on whether he’s able to continue due to the severity of it.