Bucs injuries: Mason Foster, Dashon Goldson miss Wednesday's practice

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers don't have too many injuries this week. Only two starters missed Wednesday's practice, as Mason Foster is still struggling with a "sore" hamstring, as Lovie Smith put it. Either Danny Lansanah or Dane Fletcher should replace Foster if he can't go -- likely Lansanah, as Fletcher is a consistent liability in coverage.

Dashon Goldson's shoulder injury is new, and it's not clear how serious that injury is. With Major Wright already on injured reserve and Keith Tandy being the team's primary backup at free safety, they can't really afford to have Goldson miss Sunday's game -- unless they don't mind losing, of course.

Lovie Smith also noted that rookie offensive linemen Kevin Pamphile and Josh Allen should get some extra playing time this week, which may actually be a good thing for their chances to win given how poorly Oniel Cousins and Patrick Omameh have played this year.

The Bucs have tomorrow off, which they compensated for with a Tuesday practice.

The Saints, on the other hand, were less than healthy. Six players missed practice on Wednesday, including two starting offensive tackles. We'll see whether that sticks the rest of the week, but that would help an anemic Tampa Bay pass rush. The New Orleans offensive line has struggled to contain opposing pass rushers anyway, so the absence of two tackles (if that sticks) could be particularly troublesome.

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