While the headline names have remained the same for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with wide receivers with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin dominating secondaries, beyond those 2 it’s been tough sledding for the Bucs’ pass catchers.
Specifically, the Buccaneers have seen their wide receiver corps riddled by injuries and have had to turn to players they weren’t relying on initially to step in and fill the gaps.
The latest move to find reliable targets for quarterback Baker Mayfield is veteran wide receiver Marquez Callaway, who the Buccaneers signed to the practice squad on October 16.
Callaway is in his fifth NFL season after spending his first 4 seasons with the NFC South Division rival New Orleans Saints.
From CBS Sports: “Callaway spent the offseason with the Steelers before being cut at the start of training camp. He quickly found a new opportunity in New Orleans, where he spent his first four seasons, and spent training camp in the Big Easy. However, he was unable to make it through final roster cuts. The fifth-year pass catcher will now look to make an impression with a new NFC South team in Tampa.”
The Buccaneers are 4-2 headed into a Week 7 Monday Night Football showdown against the visiting Baltimore Ravens.
Callaway Went Undrafted After All-SEC Career
Callaway went undrafted after earning All-SEC honors as a punt returner at Tennessee, where he had 91 receptions for 1,633 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns over his last 3 seasons.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein accurately predicted Callaway would go undrafted in his pre-draft evaluation in 2020.
“He’s a natural pass-catcher with plus ball skills and offers punt return value, but he must improve his routes and prove he can be more than an occasional deep ball threat if he wants to hold an NFL job,” Zierlein wrote.
Callaway made the Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2020 and found time as both a wide receiver and punt returner. He had career highs in receptions (46), receiving yards (698) and receiving touchdowns (6) in 2021.
Through his first 4 seasons, Callaway has played in 45 games with 17 starts to go with 1,312 all-purpose yards and 7 touchdowns.
Buccaneers Have Dealt With Rash of Injuries
Fortunately for the Buccaneers, the 2 wide receivers leading the way are a pair of former NFL All-Pros and Pro Bowlers in Godwin and Evans, who have combined for 68 receptions, 821 receiving yards and a whopping 10 receiving touchdowns through the first 6 games, with 5 touchdowns each.
Outside of that, it’s been kind of a wasteland. Backups Rakim Jarrett, Trey Palmer and Kameron Johnson have all dealt with injuries that have forced them to miss time.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment so far has been rookie Jalen McMillan.
McMillan had one of the best training camps of anyone on the Buccaneers and earned the spot as the third starting wide receiver after being drafted in the third round (No. 92 overall) in the 2024 NFL draft. McMillan even had a 32-yard touchdown reception in the season-opening win over the Washington Commanders.
In the 5 games since, McMillan has sat out 2 games with a hamstring injury and has just 2 receptions for 27 yards, including going without a catch on 1 target in his first game back from injury in a Week 6 win over the Saints.
