How long?

OK, great. Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan are practicing. That’s the first step in getting back on the field.

Joe has heard whispers it’s not a smart wager to bet on McMillan playing Sunday against the slimy Saints. Anything can happen, of course, but don’t hold your breath.

Evans? No one has told Joe anything about Evans but Joe has a sneaking suspicion that Bucs aim to get Evans involved in a game next Thursday night when the Bucs host Kirk “509” Cousins and the plunging Dixie Chicks.

So Joe asked Bucs offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard yesterday in his weekly press conference what he needs to see from Evans and McMillan before he can give them the green light to play.

“I think it’s more days of just the consistency of seeing [they can perform in a game],” Grizzard said. “[Wednesday] was really the first time being able to see those guys move around. So, being able to see that for a couple days in a row, [and] seeing it in a competitive nature of going against the defense in practice

“Then, really, [Grizzard is] just looking at their movement skills and being able to compare it to what it was when they were in top shape, to be able to feel like those guys are out there and they’re able to compete at the level that they need to compete at.”

Though the Bucs this week did a good job of suggesting that the season is now a one-game season and that one game is the next opponent, Joe has to wonder if there is some strategic planning going on at One Buc Palace.

The Bucs beat the snot out of the slimy Saints just before the bye in Lincoln’s Tomb in New Orleans. That happened without Chris Godwin, Bucky Irving, Evans and McMillan. The slimy Saints are a rotten team (aaaawww).

Might the Bucs want to keep Evans and McMillan on ice this weekend and then, on a short week playing 509 Cousins and the Dixie Chicks, then activate Evans and McMillan and you then have two very fresh receivers ready to go.

Then, after the Thursday night game, both Evans and McMillan have 10 days to get their legs back and go attack the Stinking Panthers on the road.