The Tampa Bay Buccaneers got a much needed victory on Sunday, defeating the Carolina Panthers soundly, 32-6. However, during the win the team took another blow to their defense. Buccaneers linebacker Shaq Barrett was forced to leave the game with a leg injury in the 2nd quarter.
Barrett briefly returned to the game in the 3rd quarter, only to leave again. He was ruled out shortly afterward.
While speaking to the media after the game, Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians addressed Barrett's injury. Arians referred to Barrett's knee injury as a mild MCL sprain, but they are not certain until further testing is done.
The Buccaneers finish the season with game's against the New York Jets and the Carolina Panthers again. They will be large favorites to win both of those games, so it would not be surprising if the Buccaneers sat him the rest of the regular season.
Tampa Bay clinched the NFC South on Sunday. They are tied with the Los Angeles Rams and a game behind the Green Bay Packers for the conference's top seed. The Packers own the tie-breaker so it is unlikely the Buccaneers will reach the top spot. That means Tampa will probably be playing on wild card weekend.
At this point, it's all about being as healthy as possible for the playoffs.
The Buccaneers lost Pro Bowl wide receiver Chris Godwin for the season in last week's loss. They also placed running back Leonard Fournette and linebacker Lavonte David on injured reserve earlier this week. Both are expected to be back for the post season.