Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Russell Gage was carted off the practice field with a knee injury Wednesday.
“We hear it’s going to be pretty serious,” head coach Todd Bowles said. “Our hearts go out to him.”
Gage sustained the injury while he was backpedaling during a joint practice with the Jets at New York’s team facility. Bowles said the team is awaiting tests to confirm a feared season-ending injury.
Gage, 27, was emotional and in tears as he was leaving the field, with teammates taking a knee around him in Florham Park, N.J.
Gage caught 51 passes for 426 yards and a career-high five touchdowns in 13 games (four starts) in his first season with the Buccaneers in 2022.
He has 244 receptions for 2,491 yards and 14 scores in 74 games (25 starts) with the Bucs and Atlanta Falcons, who drafted him in the sixth round in 2018.
Gage is listed as a starter on the Tampa Bay depth chart, along with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. His absence would give more playing time to Trey Palmer, Deven Thompkins and David Moore, among other wide receivers on the roster.
–Field Level Media