TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter said last week's game against the Carolina Panthers was "as poor as I've seen Mike [Evans] play in the whole time I've been here."

With cornerback Josh Norman and the Washington Redskins on tap Sunday (1 p.m. ET, Fox), what does that mean for Evans?

Against the Panthers, he managed one catch for 16 yards, tied for the fourth-lowest in his career. He has been dealing with a knee injury since the Bucs' loss to the Cincinnati Bengals the week prior, although it didn't impact his snap count against the Panthers. He played 60 snaps, 90 percent of the Bucs' offensive total and the most for a skill position player on the roster.

Evans made no mention of the injury Wednesday, despite it keeping him out of practice last week (he also missed practice time this week), saying it was the defense of Carolina's James Bradberry and not making enough plays.

"He's a really good player," Evans said of Bradberry. "I like his game a lot. Real physical. He definitely got the better of me this matchup for sure."

This week's opponent poses another physical challenge up front and on the back end.

"Extremely [physical]," Koetter said. "They're definitely built to be a physical football team, and so far this season they've done that."

Evans is no stranger to Norman, who heading into this season had the NFL's third-lowest catch rate allowed since 2013 (53.4 percent), according to Pro Football Focus.

The two squared off four times when Norman was with the Panthers from 2014-15. Evans had one touchdown against Norman in those games -- a corner route Evans was able to haul in over his back shoulder.

"He reads the quarterbacks well," Evans said. "Guys don't think he can run, but he can run pretty well. He has a long stride, deceptive speed and he just knows football -- he talks a lot of trash and he backs it up most of the time."

Norman's best game against Evans and the Bucs came in Week 4 of 2015. He had two interceptions -- including a pick-six -- and four pass breakups. Evans had a big game in Week 17 that year -- recording four catches for 99 yards -- but he was ejected after some of his frustration boiled over.

"We've talked trash every time. There's always trash talk," Evans said.

He was asked if there was anything "off limits."

He smiled, "Not with him, no," Evans said. "From what I remember, he's probably the worst. Him and Pacman Jones. ... He's a fun player to play against though."

The Redskins are one of the better defenses in the league, but they have surrendered a 66.6 percent completion percentage to opposing quarterbacks -- 25th in the league. The past three games, they've struggled, surrendering 85 points to opposing fantasy wide receivers (133 points PPR), second-most in the league (the Bucs gave up 83 in that span).

Like Evans, Norman struggled last week against the Atlanta Falcons. He shadowed Julio Jones heavily, with Jones catching seven passes for 121 yards and a touchdown.