The nature of the 2022 fantasy football has been brutal for fantasy managers craving consistency. The latest star playmaker to suffer a setback and land on the injury report is Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans. He had his second-best game of the season in Week 8, but an ankle injury from Week 7 still had him limited in practice on Wednesday.
We have the latest injury update on Evans and a breakdown of whether you should put him into your lineup if he’s active in Week 9.
Mike Evans Injury Update
Considering Evans originally injured his ankle in Week 7 and proceeded to catch six passes for 123 yards against the Baltimore Ravens, we thought his ankle was just fine. Maybe it is, but the All-Pro receiver could be ailing more than expected. If Evans was hurting last week, he certainly didn’t show it.
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As the WR11 and No. 44 overall player in our PPR fantasy football rankings, Evans is a must-play when he’s healthy. He’s also the 11th-most productive wide receiver in PPR leagues, so our team ranks him right on par with his production throughout this season.
With 39 receptions on 59 targets for 577 yards and three touchdowns, Evans is averaging 16.4 fantasy points per game. His last two games have seen a considerable uptick in both opportunities and production. He had 26 targets for 15 receptions and 219 yards against the Panthers and Ravens combined.
The impressive part of Evans’ production is that he’s continuing to excel despite Tom Brady’s struggles and Chris Godwin’s return to the lineup. Godwin remains Brady’s preferred checkdown option, but the explosive plays have yet to manifest for the slot star as he’s returned from a torn ACL. Evans has stepped up with so many issues surrounding the offense.
While Brady looks ready for retirement, he’s at least throwing the ball a ton, ranking second in attempts and fifth in yards. That’s all we care about when it comes to fantasy output. It’s safe to say that if Evans is active, he is firmly in your lineup regardless of the matchup. Even if Evans is limited throughout the week, there’s no reason to think he can’t perform as a WR1 or high-end WR2.
His matchup against the Rams is more favorable than some might expect. The Rams are middle-of-the-pack against wide receivers after the 49ers produced several explosive plays and touchdowns against Los Angeles last week. On the season, LA is giving up 12.7 receptions, 149.7 yards, and a full touchdown, on average.
We may see tons of Jalen Ramsey against Evans, but that’s not particularly scary. Evans is averaging 6.7 receptions, 97 yards, and 0.5 touchdowns against the Rams in six career games.
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Ramsey also hasn’t played particularly well this year, ranking 32nd in yards allowed, 69th in yards per reception allowed, 32nd in catch rate, and 65th in passer rating allowed. He’s dangerous for quarterbacks to target but hasn’t been a consistent coverage piece throughout his career.
We’ll need to watch how the injury reports categorize Evans in the coming days, but he is still a solid starting option whom you can play with confidence unless he’s ruled as doubtful.
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