Gerald McCoy injury: Game-time decision against Falcons

Gerald McCoy is doing everything he can to get ready for Thursday's game against the Atlanta Falcons, but the defensive tackle will be a game-time decision, he told Scott Smith. McCoy suffered a broken hand against the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. If he does play, the Bucs risk aggravating the injury. Update: Lovie Smith told the media today that if McCoy plays, he will do so with some kind of protection or wrapping for his hand.

McCoy: "Most of it is pain tolerance...but as much as you want to be out there, you also want to be smart.

— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) September 16, 2014

If he can't go, Clinton McDonald is likely to take over as the under tackle, while Akeem Spence will slide in at nose tackle. Da'Quan Bowers can also play the under tackle position. Given that he's a game-time decision for the Atlanta Falcons, it seems likely he'll play in any subsequent games. So that's the good news. The question is just how effective he'll be with a hand still recovering from a break.

In other injury news, Michael Johnson and Doug Martin were both practicing with the first team units, per Greg Auman. It seems likely both will play against the Atlanta Falcons. Mason Foster and Austin Seferian-Jenkins were not practicing, per Matt Baker, and we should expect those two not to suit up.

Meanwhile, in Falcons land, Roddy White missed today's practice. The Falcoholic has all the notes on their injuries.