Vincent Jackson, Louis Murphy's Updated Fantasy Outlook After Mike Evans' Injury

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers earned an improbable win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4, but they still got some bad news from the contest.    

According to Around The NFL, rookie wideout Mike Evans could be out for several weeks with a groin injury:

Whoever the Buccaneers quarterback is—and that looks to be Mike Glennon for the foreseeable future after that stunning victory—will now have to rely on star wide receiver Vincent Jackson like a crutch and look for Louis Murphy to pick up the slack.

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	TGTS
Murphy	6	99	16.5	0	11
Jackson	3	32	10.7	1	10

There have been few receiving yards to go around with Josh McCown's early struggles, but Evans has reeled in 17 catches for 203 yards and one touchdown in just under four full games of play. Jackson, who had 10 catches coming into this week, should absorb some of those numbers, although there will be some mitigating factors.

He could very well see double coverage with Evans out, and Glennon may not be a good enough signal-caller to consistently divert attention away from him with pump fakes and looking off the coverage. 

His paltry production wasn't a result of a lack of targets—25 through three weeks—but rather their lack of quality. Glennon should be able to remedy that to some extent. Still, he may see the ball coming his way at an even greater rate now, and has the talent to capitalize.

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Ira Kaufman of The Tampa Tribune noted that Murphy stepped up as soon as Evans went down:

Murphy is capable of replacing some of Evans' production and reeling in four to five catches per contest. He definitely earned some brownie points with his 41-yard reception at the end of the fourth quarter that set up Jackson's touchdown, which surely appeased the latter's frustrated fantasy owners.

Jackson is a lock as a WR2 for now. Murphy should definitely be picked up if he's available in your league, but remains a flex option at best until he shows that he can put up consistent numbers, and the quarterback situation in Tampa doesn't show signs of completely imploding. Murphy could also be a valuable addition in a trade for owners optimistic about his output in the coming weeks.