Buccaneers: Vernon Hargreaves may miss entire 2018 season

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be without an essential piece to their secondary as injuries continue to hit the defensive backfield

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers nickel corner Vernon Hargreaves may be forced to miss the entire 2018 campaign after suffering a shoulder injury, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Hargreaves is scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews to get a second opinion on the injury on Wednesday.

It was a strong start to the season for Hargreaves, who needed to prove himself after Tampa Bay invested two top draft picks in defensive backs. He had a pass defense and seven total tackles on the day.

Losing Hargreaves is the last thing the Bucs need. The defense is still an issue, and with veteran corner Brent Grimes already dealing with injuries, Tampa Bay needs a find answers as soon as possible.

It will be up to Carlton Davis, M.J. Stewart and Ryan Smith to take the reigns. The rookie duo got their first taste of regular season action and received a warm welcome from Drew Brees.

The trio needs to find a way to hold down the fort until Grimes returns. A repeat of last week’s performance would almost guarantee defeat. Unless the offense manages to match the franchises single-game scoring record again.

The former first-round pick may have to go under the knife to surgically repair the damage. Which could end most, if not all, of Hargreaves’ season.

With Hargreaves likely out for an extended period, the Buccaneers added some depth at cornerback by signing Marcus Williams. The former New York Jet and Houston Texan will slide into the back of the depth chart and provide depth and potentially some special teams production.