Final #MINvsTB injury report

OUT: Nick Samac and Brett Thorson pic.twitter.com/CXkSF5XQaS

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 25, 2026

Brett Thorson is not believed to be an IR candidate, per KOC, but he doesn’t have a precise answer on that. https://t.co/dFJqvG5HyS

— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) September 25, 2026

There's no limit for Emeka Egbuka 📈

🔜 MINvsTB Sept. 27 @ 4:05 p.m. ET on FOX pic.twitter.com/v1VGAKm6JT

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) September 25, 2026

In two games, Vikings running backs have just three catches for 15 yards total. Also dealing with injuries at the position, so not a strength against a potential concern for the Bucs defensively. https://t.co/OfU7tBLiyA

— Greg Auman (@gregauman) September 25, 2026

Bowles said both SirVocea Dennis and Christian Rozeboom will get some work taking over for Josiah Trotter at inside linebacker Sunday vs. the Vikings.

— Greg Auman (@gregauman) September 25, 2026

Bowles had said before the season, perhaps surprisingly, that inside linebacker was the position where the Bucs had the best depth, so that will get tested a bit Sunday with Trotter sidelined.

— Greg Auman (@gregauman) September 25, 2026

There’s a nonzero chance Brian Flores commandeers the pirate ship at Raymond James Stadium and starts shooting real cannonballs at Baker Mayfield on Sunday.

— Jason Harmon (@JasonHarmonNFL) September 25, 2026

Ronde Barber: “Mood is not great” at Buccaneers headquarters

The Buccaneers are 0-2, capped by a 23-19 loss to the Browns in the Tampa Bay home opener. And the sluggish start is having an impact.

Via JoeBucsFan.com, Hall of Famer Ronde Barber said this week that the vibe in the building is not ideal.

“Look, the mood is not great,” Barber said on his WFLA show. ”There’s too many mistakes. There’s a lack of urgency, if you will, in my mind when I look at them going onto the field. There’s got to be a little bit of a sense of a defining characteristic of your team through Week 2. I don’t know what that is. It’s mistakes. It’s busts. It’s lack of execution.”

Barber believes the Bucs simply weren’t ready for the games that count.

“Week 2 can’t be the fifth preseason game,” Barber said. “At some point you have to start hitting your stride. And it doesn’t feel like they’re in their stride right now on either side of the ball.”

“I feel like for much of the secondary, especially the coverage unit, they’re so focused on what they’re trying to do that they don’t know how to do it now.”

Barber also singled out former Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone, who signed with the Bucs as a free agent.

“There’s some dynamic going on, whether it’s not understanding what his role is in the defense, not understanding angles, maybe not having enough tackles in the preseason, I don’t know what it is,” Barber said. ”Something is hamstringing this defense in critical moments.”

It puts even more pressure on the Buccaneers for Week 3, the second of three straight home games. The official attendance last week was 61,391 — nearly 8,000 below capacity. (Often, the actual attendance is lower than the reported number.)

By the time the game was over, the fans who stuck it out through the lengthy weather delay weren’t happy. Those who show up for the next game will be even saltier if the Bucs slip to 0-3.

That makes it a dangerous game for the Vikings, who have overachieved to get to 2-0. This is exactly the kind of game in which the team that has done better than expected can step into a pothole against a team that has done worse than expected.

I think T.J. Hockenson is the key to Vikings win over the Buccaneers on Sunday.

I wrote about it for @AtoZSportsNFL https://t.co/7SCQ9Ra3qV

— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) September 25, 2026

One under-the-radar Minnesota Vikings player could be the difference-maker in getting a win vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After many claimed that T.J. Hockenson was washed last year due to a different role, he’s already proven his ability this season.

We are seeing the return of Kyler Murray to lead the offense, but that in itself leads to multiple questions. It’s the one main thing we don’t know about this Vikings team yet. Carson Wentz did a good job overall leading the unit, but the limitations that he has create certain challenges for O’Connell, and it’s very likely we haven’t seen the full potential of this unit.

Within the discussion about the offense, there is one intriguing element at play that hasn’t been discussed enough.

T.J. Hockenson is key to beating Buccaneers

Going into the offseason, there were many in the fanbase who thought tight end T.J. Hockenson was washed. His production shrank significantly last year, mainly because the Vikings changed his role. The offensive line was often injured last season, and Hockenson was asked to chip a significant number of times, which hindered any production he would have as a vertical threat.

The good news for the Vikings is that Hockenson showed in Week 1 that he wasn’t washed. Is he the elite tight end he was in 2022 and 2023? I don’t think so, and I think that was reflected in the pay cut Hockenson took going into this season.

With all that said, Hockenson could be the key to a victory over the Buccaneers. Let me explain.

Simply put: Todd Bowles loves to call single high coverage. According to Fantasy Points Data’s charting, Bowles has run single high coverage at a 70.8% clip, which is second-highest in the league. That in itself isn’t great when talking about how good both Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are, but it opens the door for Hockenson. Seam routes are lethal against single high coverage.

Really nice route from T.J. Hockenson stemming out to get leverage on Nick Emmanwori pic.twitter.com/nrMbCPVMzQ

— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) December 4, 2025

Especially with the attention that Jefferson and Addison are going to get on the outside, the inside will be primed for attack with Hockenson. With the added element of Bowles playing man coverage at a heavy rate, there is one more aspect of the Buccaneers’ defense that makes a lot of sense for Hockenson: the linebacker position is rough

Bowles already has a problem at linebacker with Alex Anzalone, who has a missed-tackle rate of 23.5% on the season, and a paltry PFF grade of 28.5 through two games. He looks somewhat lost on the field, and it’s not better with rookie starter Josiah Trotter having been ruled out with a shoulder injury. Pair the injuries with the man coverage percentage they are dealing with, and Hockenson looks better than ever. I don’t think they will want Christian Rozeboom and Sir’Vocea Dennis covering Hockenson on Y-choice, where he is lethal.

Yeah, T.J. Hockenson is just fine pic.twitter.com/exSHHSmr8C

— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) September 23, 2025

Hockenson isn’t the elite player we hoped he would be, but he’s ready for a resurgence, and it starts on Sunday.