It must be obvious. When you can take a week off in the NFL, you do that.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers really had nothing to play for in Week 17, with a wild card slot blocked and no chance of a division title (although taking the 5th seed means the Bucs would take champion NFC East in the first round of the playoffs). Coach Bruce Arians wanted to play as a starter out of pride for his seed, he said. And he may have lost one of his best players.
Stellar receiver Mike Evans passed a touchdown pass in the first quarter and remained on the floor. It looks like he hurt his knee. Evans left the field, but went straight to the locker room.
So, to emphasize how reckless it was to play as a starter when the Buccaneers could have taken what would have been a much needed farewell week, Tom Brady slammed his hand into a helmet later in the race and grabbed it. Brady stayed in the game.
The Aryans had a strange response last week when asked how to play as a beginner.
“We are going to play to win,” said Arians. “Eleven-five, this is very rare. To have the chance to reach 11-5, keep this sowing – we want this sowing just for pride. We don’t care who we play with, it’s more out of pride. I would probably have to hit some guys on the head with a stick to try to keep them from playing anyway. I talked to them about it before and [they said], ‘I’m playing.’ We will practice and play as if everything depends on it. It won’t be an easy game, either. “
“Pride” for a seed, or keep a big healthy receiver for the playoffs? You make the call.
Hopefully, Evans is not badly hurt. It was reminiscent of Wes Welker blowing his ACL to the Patriots in a Week 17 game when they had nothing to play for.
In a difficult turn, Evans set a record before the injury.
And there it is! Mike Evans is now the first player in NFL history to begin his career with seven consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons. However, he is being evaluated for a potential knee injury.
– Scott Smith (@ScottSBucs) January 3, 2021
If Evans is unable to play over the wild card weekend, or if any other Buccaneers player is hit in a meaningless week 17 game, that should be a warning to other coaches in the years to come. Take the week off. Don’t think too much.
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