The Bucs have to keep shuffling the deck at cornerback with injury after injury. Jamel Dean left Sunday’s game early with a shoulder injury and might be out next game. But luckily, they could get top cornerback Carlton Davis III back this week.

Speaking with Bruce Arians on Monday, he was optimistic that Davis will play for the first time since Week 4.

“He had a real good week of practice last week,” Arians said. “We’ll see how this [week] goes. He had a great workout before the game. Right now, I’m hoping he’ll be ready to roll.”

Davis suffered a quad injury in a win over the Patriots on Sunday Night Football and was placed on injured reserve soon after. The Bucs opened the 21-day practice window to activate him off of IR last week. Davis had been seen running off to the side during practice.

Given the uncertainty of Dean’s availability for Sunday’s game in Atlanta, the Bucs need Davis back in the worst way. As it currently stands, the Bucs would be down to Sean Murphy-Bunting, who struggled in the win over the Colts, and backups Pierre Desir, Dee Delaney and Ross Cockrell. Safety Mike Edwards has stepped into the slot over the past three games as well. But the defensive back is currently nursing a bruised knee.

Not only do they need Davis for depth purposes, but he is their best corner on the roster and the most reliable player at the position. He has 15 tackles, five pass breakups and an interception in four games this season.

The Bucs travel again this week to play Atlanta on Sunday at 1:00 pm.