The Bucs defense has been waylaid by injuries this season, from cornerbacks Sean Murphy-Bunting and Carlton Davis to linebacker Lavonte David and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. It didn’t take long to lose another on Thursday night, as Richard Sherman pulled his hamstring in the first quarter. Just six snaps into his third start of the season, Sherman was ruled out for the game.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the injury does not seem to be “major”, but Sherman will undergo an MRI today. The test should reveal the severity of the hamstring injury. Rapoport reports that the All-Pro cornerback might miss “a couple of weeks”.
From @GMFB: #Bucs CB Richard Sherman will have an MRI today on his hamstring but he's likely going to miss some time; #Giants QB Daniel Jones (concussion) is on track for Sunday; #Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey (hamstring) took a step back Thursday. pic.twitter.com/fDr1SEBslJ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 15, 2021
“Pulled a hamstring,” head coach Bruce Arians said. “I have no idea (how it happened). It just happened.”
The Bucs will have ten days until their next game against the Bears. That’s more time than normal for Sherman to recover, but it sounds like Rapoport is hearing he’ll be out longer than that. If Sherman is out for Week 7, the Bucs would likely start Jamel Dean and Ross Cockrell at cornerback, with the latter sliding to the slot in nickel defense. Dee Delaney played 46 snaps after Sherman went down on Thursday night. Either he or Pierre Desir would start in Sherman’s place.
It’s unlikely that Davis or Murphy-Bunting will be activated from injured reserve by Week 7. We’ll see what the MRI reveals, but right now the Bucs aren’t anticipating any new additions at cornerback.
“No, we just keep playing with the guys that we have,” Arians said. “We’ll see what happens. We’ll see how long of an injury it is. Next man up.”