Coming out of their bye week into preparing for their Week 10 game against the Patriots on Sunday afternoon, the Bucs had to hope they were going to be a bit healthier as a team than they were the last time they took the field, which was two Sundays ago in New Orleans.

Unfortunately for Tampa Bay, that wasn’t really the case — at least for the most part.

Heading into the weekend, the Bucs had already ruled out wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr. (fibula), running back Bucky Irving (foot/shoulder) and outside linebackers Haason Reddick (ankle/knee) and Markees Watts (hand). The two sources of hope — admittedly of varying levels of importance — were right tackle Luke Goedeke (foot) and reserve guard Luke Haggard (shoulder), who carried “questionable” tags into Sunday.

Bucs RT Luke Goedeke – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Goedeke, of course, has been missing in action since a reaggravated foot injury in Week 2 landed him on injured reserve. Meanwhile, Haggard missed the last two games before the bye week due to a shoulder injury he suffered in the Bucs’ Week 6 win over the 49ers. Some good news came Saturday afternoon when the team activated Goedeke from injured reserve, seemingly signaling that he would be ready to make his return for Sunday’s game against New England.

Sure enough, that’s the case. With the full inactives list released ahead of kickoff, Goedeke’s name is notably absent, meaning he’s ready to come back and start at right tackle for the first time since Sept. 15. As for Haggard, he is inactive, meaning he’ll miss a third straight game.

Joining Godwin, Irving, Reddick, Watts and Haggard on the inactives list is guard Elijah Klein and defensive tackle C.J. Brewer. With Haggard and Klein inactive, Mike Jordan will presumably get the start once again at right guard in between the returning Goedeke and center Graham Barton.

Patriots Will Be Without Three Key Contributors vs. Bucs

New England doesn’t come to Tampa in full health, either, as two key offensive players will be missing from the lineup. Wide receiver Kayshon Boutte picked up a hamstring injury in last week’s win over the Falcons, and he was ruled out Friday and was among the names on the Patriots’ inactives list.

Boutte has been quarterback Drake Maye’s favorite deep threat this season and is the team’s second-leading receiver and leading touchdown scorer through nine games with 23 catches for 431 yards (18.7 avg.) and five touchdowns. His absence leaves a big hole in New England’s offense, one that Maye and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will have to adjust to against a tough Todd Bowles defense.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson – Photo by: USA Today

The other key absence on the visiting side is that of running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who is part of the 1-2 punch in the Patriots’ backfield. He has 83 carries for 279 yards (3.4 avg.) and three touchdowns this season, and with him inactive for Sunday’s game, that could mean a heavier workload for rookie TreVeyon Henderson, who leads New England with 67 carries for 283 yards (4.2 avg.) and a touchdown this season.

The Patriots also come into Sunday’s game without a key starter on defense, as second-leading tackler Christian Elliss is also out with a hip injury. He has 53 tackles (23 solo), a pass defensed and a forced fumble this season.

Here’s a look at the Patriots’ full inactives list for Sunday’s game against the Bucs in Tampa: