Report: Buccaneers WR Russell Gage to miss 2023 season after injury during joint practice with Jets

ESPN is reporting that Buccaneers receiver Russell Gage is out for the season as a result of a knee injury he suffered Wednesday morning in workouts.

Tampa coach Todd Bowles didn’t give a timeline for Gage when he spoke with reporters after practice ended. However, he said he knows the knee injury is a serious one.

“We hear it’s gonna be pretty serious, and I’ll wait to hear the final results,” Bowles said. “But he’s been battling back for the last … obviously since he’s been here. We wish him the best. I can tell by the way he was sitting on the truck that it is probably something that happened pretty bad. …Our hearts go out to him. And we’ll see how it goes.”

Prayers up for Russ 🙏 pic.twitter.com/ZuP8JnmF3J

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) August 16, 2023

The scary part of the injury is Russell Gage went down without contact. Reports out of Bucs camp suggested that Gage fell as he was back pedaling. He couldn’t put weight on his leg and he wiped away tears as he was carted to the lockerroom. While he still was down, several players took a knee near him. The Bucs are conducting joint practices with the Jets this week and players from both teams were emotional as Gage was on the ground.

Russell gage has battled his entire football life. At LSU, he switched from defensive back to receiver midway through his junior year. He caught five passes in a game against Texas A&M. Those represented his only receptions of the year. He posted 21 catches his senior season. But his highlights weren’t good enough to secure an invitation to a major all-star game or to the NFL Scouting Combine. Still, the Falcons selected him in the sixth round of the 2018 draft.

The Bucs signed him to a three-year, $30 million deal before the 2022 season. The year before, he enjoyed a monster game against them, catching 11 passes for 130 yards.

Gage dealt with hamstring issues last season, staying on injured reserve for five games. Plus he suffered what appeared to be a neck injury against the Cowboys in the wildcard round of the playoffs. He spent a night in the hospital, with doctors diagnosing him with a concussion.

Despite missing so much action, Russell Gage still caught 51 passes for 426 yards and five touchdowns. In the latest Bucs depth chart, David Moore was Gage’s backup. Moore caught three passes ;ast week in the Bucs’ preseason opener against the Steelers. He’s played for seven teams, but hasn’t caught a pass in a regular-season game since 2021 when he played for Green Bay.