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Game status: The Bucs have announced Julio Jones is inactive for Sunday’s game.
Game day update: Jones is not expected to play on Sunday. He still could test the knee injury in pre-game warmups, but the Bucs are not expecting him out there for the game.
While he may work out pre-game to see where it stands, the #Bucs are not expected to have WR Julio Jones today, source said. He's been dealing with a knee issue and was listed as questionable after being limited all week.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 18, 2022
Julio Jones is on the injury report this week. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers listed the veteran wideout as questionable. His long-running knee issue has apparently flared up, and he did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday. Jones was back on the field for Friday’s session as a limited participant.
It’s hard to know exactly what’s going on with Jones. The team has been giving him some rest days throughout the season, so the missed practices this week could just be a precaution. It’s likely we won’t get confirmation for his availability until closer to game time on Sunday.
The Bucs host the Cincinnati Bengals for a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff on Sunday.
Fantasy football implications
Jones hasn’t had more than 40 yards in a game for a few weeks now, so he’s probably not someone you would want in your fantasy football lineup anyway. The Bucs just aren’t doing much in the passing game with a rapidly aging Tom Brady under center.
A healthy Russell Gage could fill in the void this week if Jones is out.