Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for us to see the first serious injury of the 2022 training camp season, as Tampa Bay Buccaneers Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen suffered a knee injury on Thursday. While nothing is official yet, NFL Network reports that the fear is that he suffered a season-ending injury.
Head coach Todd Bowles said Jensen will miss at least several months, so what will the Buccaneers do now? Bowles said there has been some discussion about signing a free agent center, but not too much yet, according to The Athletic.
Tampa Bay also has a few in-house candidates who could take over for Tom Brady this season, but they’ll have to earn that job. The Buccaneers are Super Bowl contenders, and replacing one of the two players who touch the ball on every offensive play is very important. Next, we’ll examine five candidates who could replace Jensen in the middle of the offensive line.
1. Robert Hainsey
ESPN’s Jeff Darlington reports that the Bucs are in line for Hainsey and that he will have a chance to replace Jensen. That sure makes him sound like the leader right now. A third-round pick last year out of Notre Dame, Hainsey played in nine games with zero starts. In all, he played 31 offensive snaps in his rookie season, all at center. He played right tackle in college.
2. Nick Leverett
Leverett is another internal candidate to replace Jensen. Uncommitted from Rice in 2020, he has played in two games in two seasons with 60 offensive snaps last year, all at left guard. If he or Hainsey impress, then the Buccaneers are unlikely to scour the free agent market for a veteran.
Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe.
Thanks for signing up!
Keep an eye on your inbox.
Sorry!
An error occurred while processing your subscription.
3. JC Tretter
The NFLPA president is a well-known player who is one of three free agent options that NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport named as a possible replacement. Tretter is still looking for another NFL team after being released by the Cleveland Browns after five seasons in which he missed just one game. The 31-year-old was originally drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft out of Cornell. In fact, he posted the highest PFF grade of his career last season at 78.7.
4. Matt Paradis
Paradis, 32, is another player Rapoport named as a possible replacement for Jensen. He won Super Bowl 50 during one of his four seasons with the Denver Broncos and spent the last three years with the Carolina Panthers. Paradis played in just nine games last year before tearing his ACL.
5. Billy Price
Price is the only first-round pick on this list, as he was the No. 21 overall pick to the Cincinnati Bengals in 2018. Just 27 years old, Price spent three seasons in Cincy before being traded to the New York Giants ahead. the 2021 season. He played 985 snaps at center last year.