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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons will kick off the Week 5 schedule on Thursday Night Football with their showdown inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium at 8:15 p.m. ET. There were some concerns about Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans heading into this week, especially considering it's a short turnaround from Sunday.
Evans was a limited participant in practice, but he is expected to suit up against Tampa Bay later tonight. So what does Week 5 hold in store for Evans and his teammate Chris Godwin?
Mike Evans fantasy outlook for Week 5 TNF
Let's start with Evans' Week 4 production in a game where the Tampa Bay offense sliced through the Philadelphia Eagles like a hot knife through butter.
Evans had 19.4 points in Week 4 on encouraging volume. He had 14 targets in all and hauled in eight catches for 94 yards and a touchdown.
Evans' 14 targets were an outlier compared to three in Week 3 vs. the Denver Broncos, six in Week 2 vs. the Detroit Lions and six in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders.
Clearly, Weeks 2 and 3 weren't too productive, but Evans is still quarterback Baker Mayfield's No. 1 target. And Mayfield's on a roll through four weeks of football. Evans will see a lot of Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell tonight, but after that Eagles game, we expect the Bucs' WR1 to come out on top.
Chris Godwin fantasy outlook for Week 5 TNF
Compared to Evans, Chris Godwin has been a little more consistent. He has between eight and nine targets in all four games, so the Bucs clearly know they need Godwin involved more often than not. And with good reason, since he has a steady pair of hands.
In Week 1, Godwin had eight catches on eight targets for 83 yards. In Week 2, he had seven catches on eight targets for 117 yards. In Week 3? Six catches on nine targets for 53 yards. He also had a touchdown in all three games. Week 4's numbers weren't the worst, but it was Mike Evans who was a little more involved on the day.
The Bucs are clearly going pass-heavy this year, and with Baker Mayfield under center, they haven't had to worry about any lulls in this offense. The problem with Godwin is that on any given night, he has to compete with Evans for targets.
Mike Evans or Chris Godwin: Who should you start in Week 5?
Like Sportskeeda's Start/Sit Optimizer, we're marginally higher on Evans this week. Yes, he'll see a lot more coverage tonight, but Evans didn't exactly struggle in this matchup last year.
Evans shouldn't be on anyone's bench tonight, but if you have either of the two, be sure to start a Bucs receiver, especially given Jalen McMillan is out for this Thursday Night Football matchup.
