Russell Gage to miss 2023 season

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler confirms that Bucs WR Russell Gage will miss the entire 2023 season with the knee injury he suffered in Wednesday's practice. Gage was locked into Tampa's No. 3 WR job before this injury. The Bucs are now left with WRs Trey Palmer, Deven Thompkins, David Moore, and Rakim Jarrett to battle for that job. Palmer is an intriguing rookie and might be worth a look near the very end of best-ball drafts. Gage's injury should mean extra targets for WR Chris Godwin, WR Mike Evans, RB Rachaad White, and TE Cade Otton. We've adjusted all the Bucs in the 2023 fantasy football rankings.

Update: Gage suffered a ruptured right patellar tendon.

Buccaneers WR Russell Gage suffered a non-contact knee injury in Wednesday's joint practice with the Jets and needed to be carted off. NFL Network reports that "the belief heading into exams is that the severe injury will end his season." That's an especially big blow to Gage, who dealt with hamstring issues throughout last year, his first in Tampa Bay. We don't see much fantasy impact, though. Gage was set to be no more than the WR3 in what we expect to be a lackluster passing offense. His injury could mean more time in the slot for Chris Godwin. Deven Thompkins and rookie Trey Palmer look like candidates for the No. 3 WR role.

Bucs WR Russell Gage returned to practice on Sunday. He missed the team's first three sessions with a leg injury, per reporter Greg Auman. The veteran is just a late-round flier in fantasy drafts.

Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles told reporters Tuesday morning that WR Russell Gage has a "little bit ways to go" to be healthy enough for training-camp practices. Gage likely has more missed practice days than receptions since joining Tampa Bay last offseason. Fortunately, he sits at the very end of drafts in ADP -- when he gets selected at all. Don't expect Gage to be an impactful fantasy asset for 2023.

Bucs WR Russell Gage sustained a concussion in Monday night's Wild Card loss to the Cowboys but avoided any other damage and will be released from the hospital this afternoon, HC Todd Bowles said. "His neck is fine and right now he has all his extremities moving," Bowles added. This is Gage's 3rd documented concussion, but it sounds like he'll be ready for the start of the offseason program. Gage had a disappointing debut season with the Bucs, finishing with a 51-426-5 line across 13 games. He's set to count a little more than $12 million against the 2023 cap but carries a $9.3 million dead cap number, so he figures to be back in Tampa Bay for at least 1 more year.

Bucs WR Russell Gage (hamstring) is active for tonight's game vs. the Saints. It's his 1st action since Week 7. Gage averaged an underwhelming 5.7 targets, 4.1 catches and 33 yards over the first 7 games of the season. We're expecting him to operate as Tampa's #4 WR tonight behind Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Julio Jones.