Bucs release the initial injury report for their Week 14 matchup with the Vikings

The Bucs are fresh off their bye week and are looking to get back on track against the Vikings this weekend.

Tampa Bay released its initial injury report on Wednesday and there were a few surprises. Chris Godwin, Steve McClendon, Lavonte David, and Jamel Dean highlight the list of those who didn’t practice while Mike Evans, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Donovan Smith were limited.

Dean’s name is a bit of a surprise considering he cleared concussion protocol, however, Arians was kind enough to shed some light on Dean’s situation after Wednesday’s practice.

“He cleared the protocol, but he had a very, very sore groin, so he did not practice today,” Arians told reporters. “Hopefully, we’ll get him healed up.”

Arians also let everyone know why Godwin didn’t practice. “There was no way with that finger – having the pins taken out – that I was going to let the ball touch him,” he said. “He went through walkthrough and caught one upside down [and] backwards, but he’s not going to catch any balls until Friday.”

David’s situation seems pretty self-explanatory, but seeing McClendon’s name on the report also throws up a red flag, even if it’s not the most dire of flags at this moment. That’ll certainly be something to monitor as the week progresses.

Minnesota was missing some key players Wednesday, as well. Eric Kendricks hurt his calf in pregame warm-ups on Sunday and it looks like the calf is still giving him issues. That’s a big loss if he can’t go this week. Irv Smith Jr. continues to battle injuries that have kept him out of the last two games and Kyle Rudolph could possibly snap his streak of 93 consecutive starts if he misses Sunday’s game.

Vikings fans will be happy to see Jeff Gladney’s name associated with a limited practice. The rookie corner was hurt during last week’s game and many have wondered if he’d play this week. The fact he was able to get in a limited practice bodes well for him.

The Kendricks injury is a big deal. The All-Pro linebacker was severely missed last week. Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Wednesday that he “hopes” to see Kendrick return to practice this week, but didn’t offer much after that.

“I saw him in the hallway [at Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center] today,” Zimmer told reporters. “We’ll see how it goes. We didn’t talk much. We’ve got a few more days to get ready.”

Be sure to check back in throughout the week for updates.