Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Jalen McMillan took a meaningful step toward returning to the lineup Wednesday, practicing in full after missing the season opener because of a knee injury.
The designation matters because McMillan had spent much of the previous week working with restrictions and was ultimately inactive against Cincinnati. A full session at the start of Browns week puts him in a much stronger position to make his 2026 debut when Tampa Bay hosts Cleveland on Sunday.
McMillan’s Week 2 status is clearly better than it was before the opener
FSN previously covered how McMillan returned to practice before Week 1 after dealing with the knee issue, but that return did not translate into game availability. He remained limited throughout the week and was held out against the Bengals.
Wednesday’s full participation is the clearest improvement yet. It does not guarantee McMillan will play Sunday, because Tampa Bay still has two more practices and a final game-status report to file, but it removes the workload restriction that followed him into the opener.
That gives the Buccaneers a chance to restore another piece of the receiving rotation after playing Week 1 without McMillan. Tampa Bay still generated offense in Cincinnati, but the passing game operated with a narrower group than the team expected when the season began.
Why McMillan’s return would matter for Baker Mayfield
McMillan gives Baker Mayfield another receiver who can separate and threaten defenses outside the numbers. Tampa Bay’s offense already has Chris Godwin Jr. and Emeka Egbuka, but adding McMillan would create more flexibility in three-receiver sets and reduce the number of snaps that have to be redistributed to reserve wideouts.
The timing is useful because the Buccaneers are trying to respond quickly after a frustrating opener. FSN’s recap of Tampa Bay’s 33-27 loss to Cincinnati showed that the offense moved the ball well enough to win but repeatedly gave possessions away with four lost fumbles.
McMillan does not solve ball-security problems by himself, but his return would give Mayfield another trusted option while Tampa Bay tries to clean up the mistakes that decided Week 1.
Sean Tucker also moved in the right direction
Running back Sean Tucker, who missed the opener with a hamstring injury, was also a full participant Wednesday. His progress gives the Buccaneers another potential offensive and special-teams return for Week 2.
On defense, cornerback Jacob Parrish was limited with a back injury and safety Miles Killebrew was limited with a concussion. Those two situations remain worth monitoring because Parrish left the Cincinnati game and Tampa Bay’s secondary depth could become important against Cleveland.
The Browns present a different challenge than Cincinnati
Cleveland enters Week 2 with its own injury concerns and already has running back Dylan Sampson on injured reserve. The Browns’ first Wednesday injury report also included multiple offensive linemen, including guard Teven Jenkins as a non-participant.
For Tampa Bay, getting healthier at wide receiver would allow the offense to attack a Browns defense that is preparing for a second straight road game. The Buccaneers do not need McMillan to return as the focal point immediately; simply having him available would expand the personnel menu and make it harder for Cleveland to concentrate coverage on the top two receivers.
What to watch next
The most important signal will be whether McMillan remains a full participant Thursday and Friday. If he does, the conversation should shift from whether he can play to how large a role Tampa Bay wants to give him in his first game back.
If the Buccaneers manage his workload, McMillan could still provide situational value in third-down and red-zone packages. If the knee responds well enough for a normal role, Tampa Bay’s Week 2 receiving group could look much closer to the unit it expected to field when the season began.
Sources
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Week 2 injury report vs. Browns (September 16, 2026)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Browns-Buccaneers Week 2 preview (September 17, 2026)
- NFL.com: Official Week 2 injury report (accessed September 17, 2026)