TAMPA, Fla. -- After a slow start to his second NFL season, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans seems eager to place his recent right hamstring injury behind him.
"I'm looking forward to it," Evans said of playing Sunday against the Houston Texans. "I'm full-go. I won't be on a pitch count. It's exciting, and hopefully we'll get the win."
That "pitch count" refers to Evans' being limited to 40 of his team's 66 snaps in a Week 2 victory over the New Orleans Saints. He suffered the injury in the preseason against the Cincinnati Bengals on Aug. 24, and he sat out Week 1 as the Bucs exercised caution.
Coming off a rookie season when he led Tampa Bay with 1,051 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns, Evans has yet to catch a pass this year. But Evans' return to better health serves as welcome news for wide receiver Vincent Jackson, who considers the Bucs' offensive attack more dynamic with the young pass-catching threat.
"We want to keep as many guys healthy as we can on that side of the ball," Jackson said. "It's going to be huge for us. Because you see it around the league, each and every week, [with] guys going down. ... It really can affect your team moving throughout the season.
"Having Mike out there, obviously, we're doing the best we can to make sure he's going to stay healthy for the long run. But any time he's out there on the field, man, he's a threat. He's going to get the respect of the defenses, and he's going to open up things for other guys on the field. So we want him to be out there, obviously, making plays like we all know that he can make, and I think he's ready to make that turn."
Andrew Astleford covers the Buccaneers for ESPN.com.