The Tampa Bay Buccaneers entered Week 10 hoping to regain two key offensive pieces, but Thursday’s practice update offered little encouragement.
While the team continues preparing for a pivotal matchup against the New England Patriots, the status of running back Bucky Irving and wide receiver Chris Godwin remains unchanged, and not in a positive way.
Will Bucky Irving and Chris Godwin Play in Week 10?
Thursday marked the second straight practice this week in which neither Irving nor Godwin participated, a development first reported by Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.
As Stroud noted, “No Bucky Irving, Chris Godwin or Haason Reddick at practice today. Luke Goedeke continues to practice and it’s going to be a call later this week but suspect he will play. Bucs have a 21 day window to activate him.”
That update confirmed that both offensive players are still trending toward missing Week 10, marking what would be Irving’s fifth straight absence and Godwin’s fourth. While the team has not placed either player on injured reserve, the continued lack of progress raises questions about the original timelines.
Irving and Godwin were not seen in practice on Friday, either. Later in the day, Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles confirmed that both players will not play in Week 10.
Todd Bowles confirms that Chris Godwin, Bucky Irving, Haason Reddick and Markees Watts are OUT.
— River Wells (@riverhwells) November 7, 2025
Irving is dealing with both toe and shoulder injuries, with the shoulder injury being the more serious concern. He has now missed four games, creating reasonable speculation about why the Buccaneers avoided an IR designation. The possibilities, either the injury worsens unexpectedly or there is a setback, remain unconfirmed.
Godwin, sidelined by a fibula injury, is in a similar situation. His absence has stretched beyond three weeks, yet the team still appears to be holding out hope for a short-term return rather than the four-game IR minimum.
Even before this week’s injury update, the numbers already reflected how much the Buccaneers’ offense has struggled without its playmakers.
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The Buccaneers are 6-2 for the 2025 season, but the efficiency behind that record tells a different story. Based on PFSN’s Offense Impact metric, the Buccaneers hold an Offense Impact Score of 71.4, ranking 23rd in the league, and were assigned a C- grade, matching their overall rank of 23rd out of 556 teams measured.
The data reinforces what the on-field product has shown: the Buccaneers are winning, but not because of offensive consistency.
With both Irving and Godwin out, the Buccaneers will again lean on Rachaad White and Sean Tucker in the backfield, with Tucker’s recent workload hinting at a possible shift in the depth chart. In the passing game, younger targets such as Emeka Egbuka, Tez Johnson, and Kameron Johnson will have to shoulder more responsibility.