McMillan (knee) full-go for Wednesday’s practice

Hurst’s first NFL reception was a sure-handed grab against tight coverage as he went to the ground. Pro Football Focus charted Hurst as playing 43-of-57 snaps. That’s an extremely strong mark for a rookie third-rounder, though it will only last as long as Jalen McMillan is on the shelf with his knee injury. The Bucs declined to formally rule McMillan out until this morning, so there is a chance he is back for Week 2 against the Browns. For now, Hurst remains waiver wire fodder in 12-team leagues.

As is Sean Tucker (hamstring). McMillan’s immediate absence will force the Bucs to dig in to their young receiving depth earlier than they would have liked, but rookie Ted Hurst is not a bad fall-back option for the club. For fantasy managers, however, Hurst is not yet an option even in 14-team leagues. Also inactive for the Bucs are OT Justin Skule, CB Ayden Garnes, DL DeMonte Capehart, DL Elijah Simmons and OG Billy Schrauth.

In addition to McMillan, the Buccaneers are also listing RB Sean Tucker (hamstring) as doubtful, putting both players on the wrong side of being active for Week 1. McMillan was able to log a limited week of practice, so hopefully he’ll have a chance to suit up in Week 2 when the Buccaneers take on the Browns. Rookie WR Ted Hurst should make for an interesting dart throw in DFS as he looks to be in line for more work with McMillan sidelined.

McMillan is on track to face the Bengals on Sunday, but he is clearly still ramping up post-injury, potentially adding volatility to his Week 1 outlook. The Buccaneers’ No. 3 wide receiver is a boom-bust FLEX.

The Buccaneers listed McMillan as a starter on the official depth chart yesterday, which is seemingly a vote of confidence regarding his availability this week. McMillan is on track to play, but will likely be limited to FLEX status in fantasy, playing behind WR Emeka Egbuka and WR Chris Godwin.

It’s McMillan, not rookie WR Ted Hurst III, who’s listed as a starter alongside Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka ahead of Tampa’s Week 1 game against the Bengals. Hurst, the tallest of the Bucs wideouts, has by all accounts impressed Bucs players and coaches throughout the offseason and should have some kind of role in the team’s passing attack to start the year. It could be a while before Hurst takes on a more prominent role, however. Bucs general manager Jason Licht said last week that Hurst, 22, has “proven to us throughout camp, even OTAs, practice every day that he’s been very, very steady...it’s kind of evolved into okay, we can use him this year and he’s going to play a role.” Hurst can be stashed in deeper fantasy formats for now. McMillan is unlikely to be a factor in the Tampa offense after once again struggling with injuries this offseason.

Egbuka was working with trainers last week, but was on the field with the team on Monday. The Buccaneers won’t release their first official injury report until Wednesday, but it sounds like Egbuka is trending in the right direction ahead of the Buccaneers’ Week 1 game against the Bengals. Egbuka has been dealing with this toe injury since mid-August, but it seems like the Bucs have slowly ramped him up as of late. His practice status will be one to monitor when the first injury report drops. In addition to Egbuka, WR Jalen McMillan and OT Justin Skule were also practicing, while RB Sean Tucker was not seen on the field.

Licht said Hurst was initially slated for a learning role behind the deep Buccaneers wide receiver corps. However, he added that the rookie 22-year-old has “proven to us throughout camp, even OTAs, practice every day that he’s been very, very steady...it’s kind of evolved into okay, we can use him this year and he’s going to play a role.” Hurst has received generally positive reports out of training camp. With Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan continuing to deal with injuries throughout preseason, Hurst has gotten more opportunities and proven to the front office he can be used as a rookie. When Egbuka, McMillan, and Chris Godwin are all healthy, Hurst will have a tough time putting up fantasy-relevant production. However, given various active injuries and the injury history of the Bucs’ wide receiver room, he is certainly worth a late-round pick for fantasy purposes.

Egbuka was given a ringing “hopefully” response from Todd Bowles when asked if he’d play in Week 1. We’re not overly concerned just yet, but he’s going to need to practice at some point to play. Jalen McMillan (knee) also sat, though we’re not as concerned about him since he’s practiced on that knee injury.

He was sidelined for a little over two weeks. McMillan is being treated like an afterthought in drafts, going off the board behind Cooper Kupp in the WR6 ranks. McMillan had a nine-target game last year despite missing most of the season and is still just 24 years old. Even with the Ted Hurst hype coming out of camp, there’s a chance for McMillan to be a useful spot starter in fantasy leagues this year.