![\"Buccaneers](\"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-1880636462-e1763141837880.jpg\")
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Getty<\/p>\n
Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans.<\/p>\n
If the reality of how bad the injuries suffered by\u00a0Tampa Bay Buccaneers\u00a0stars\u00a0Bucky Irving\u00a0and\u00a0Chris Godwin\u00a0were, this might be the week that finally seals the deal.<\/p>\n
Irving and Godwin were ruled out for a massive Week 11 road game against the\u00a0Buffalo Bills\u00a0on Friday, marking Tampa Bay\u2019s eighth game without Godwin this season due to a fibula injury and their sixth game without Irving due to a shoulder injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cBucs\u00a0coach Todd Bowles told reporters that RB\u00a0Bucky\u00a0Irving\u00a0and WR Chris Godwin are both out for Sunday,\u201d\u00a0NFL Network\u2019s Ian Rapoport\u00a0wrote on his official X account on Friday, November 14. \u201cBut progress this week \u2026 \u201c<\/p>\n
The Buccaneers are 6-3 and still in first place in the NFC South Division but staring down a killer string of road games against Super Bowl contenders, and doing so right after a disappointing, 28-23 home loss to the\u00a0New England Patriots\u00a0in Week 10.<\/p>\n
After facing the Bills, the Buccaneers head to the West Coast to face the\u00a0Los Angeles Rams\u00a0\u2014 arguably the NFC favorite at this point in the season<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite logging three straight days of practice,\u00a0Buccaneers\u00a0RB\u00a0Bucky\u00a0Irving\u00a0(shoulder) has been ruled OUT and won\u2019t play Sunday vs the Bills,\u201d\u00a0NFL reporter Arye Pulli\u00a0wrote on his official X account. \u201cChris Godwin has also been ruled out once again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anyone unlucky enough to see\u00a0Godwin\u2019s gruesome injury\u00a0on Monday Night Football against the\u00a0Baltimore Ravens\u00a013 months ago probably knew right then it was going to be awhile before he saw a football field again.<\/p>\n
Godwin underwent surgery on his dislocated left ankle and things checked out afterward to the point that not only did the Buccaneers sign him to a new, 3-year, $66 million contract in March but the Patriots went so far as to try and sign Godwin for a\u00a0deal worth a reported $90 million.<\/p>\n
Problems started to arise when news broke Godwin needed a second surgery to fix the ankle \u2014 further extending the amount of time he needed to recover. Still, the Buccaneers brought him back for a Week 4 loss to the\u00a0Philadelphia Eagles\u00a0and a Week 5 win over the\u00a0Seattle Seahawks\u00a0before putting him back on the shelf after \u201cirritation\u201d with that same injury.<\/p>\n
Godwin\u2019s injury has now cost him 19 combined regular season and playoff games \u2014 2 more than a whole regular season.<\/p>\n
The big questions that remain are what went wrong with the surgeries, why the Buccaneers still signed Godwin to such a large contract if there were problems and why did they\u00a0bring him back so early\u00a0instead of just putting him on injured reserve?<\/p>\n
Irving\u2019s injury recovery process got off to a weird start, which included him not coming clean that he was hurt when he should have.<\/p>\n
\u201cTurns out that Buccaneers RB\u00a0Bucky\u00a0Irving\u2019s\u00a0shoulder\u00a0injury, which he did not report to the team until Tuesday last week, is more of an issue than his sprained foot, per sources,\u201d\u00a0ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter wrote on his official X account on October 5. \u201cIrving\u00a0is dealing with a\u00a0shoulder\u00a0subluxation that is expected to sideline him at least two weeks. Irving will not play today vs. the Seahawks and he\u2019s not expected back for next week\u2019s game vs. the 49ers, either.\u201d<\/p>\n
Green Bay, Wisconsin \u2014 After another intense showdown that left the Packers frustrated and the referee crew under fire, Micah Parsons stood before the cameras in his locker-room gear and didn\u2019t hold back. He had been simmering for weeks, but this time, his words cut sharp and clear: he accused the officiating of more than just mistakes. He called it bias. He called it unfair. He called it a betrayal of the sport.<\/p>\n
Parsons\u2019 exact words sent shockwaves:<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s stop pretending this is football when one side gets the calls and the other side gets the doubts. We deserve a fair game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Parsons isn\u2019t just another player complaining about refs. He\u2019s one of the most dominant defensive forces in the NFL, and he\u2019s new to Green Bay \u2014 traded from the Dallas Cowboys in a blockbuster deal earlier this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sources inside the Packers\u2019 locker room say Parsons\u2019 remarks didn\u2019t surprise his teammates \u2014 they\u2019d heard the grumbling, saw the missed calls live, and felt the momentum shift. One veteran said, \u201cWe all know when we\u2019re getting the short end. When our best player says it out loud \u2014 the rest of us listen.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the recent road game in Philadelphia, the Packers lost by a narrow margin. But what stung more than the loss was a sequence of plays late in the game:<\/p>\n
A defensive stop that was reversed because of a penalty flag many felt didn\u2019t make sense.<\/p>\n
A running play that seemed to push the pocket, no call.<\/p>\n
A fourth-quarter drive for the Packers that stalled after a holding call against Green Bay, which looked weak even on replay.
The accumulated effect, according to Packers commentary, was that the margin of fairness had tilted.
Parsons addressed this directly: \u201cIt\u2019s not about one call. It\u2019s about the message those calls send.\u201d<\/p>\n
The NFL has faced officiating controversies for decades. But a high-profile player like Parsons going public adds weight. Analysts suggest that if enough credible voices speak, the league may feel pressure to review calls, adjust training, or increase transparency.
Parsons\u2019 11-word line \u2014 which he paused to let sink in \u2014 continues to echo:<\/p>\n
\u201cWe deserve better than this. A fair game for every team.\u201d
Those words are replayed on highlight reels, in fan posts, and inside sports radio studios across the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Getty Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. If the reality of how bad the injuries suffered by\u00a0Tampa Bay Buccaneers\u00a0stars\u00a0Bucky Irving\u00a0and\u00a0Chris Godwin\u00a0were, this might be the week that finally…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hot-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t