Several Buccaneers not traveling vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

As the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to face the Pittsburgh Steelers tomorrow night in their first preseason action, several players stayed behind.

According to The Athletic’s Greg Auman, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have already listed nine players who will not make the trip to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers in their first preseason game tomorrow night. Unfortunately for the Buccaneers, a good number among them are expected to be significant contributors who are dealing with injuries.

The two big names who will not be playing tomorrow night and who are still in Tampa Bay are veteran linebacker Lavonte David and last year’s first rounder Vita Vea. David is dealing with a slightly torn meniscus in his knee that could sideline him all the way up to the regular season, while Vea went down with a knee injury this week and is scheduled for an MRI tomorrow.

Three rookie draft picks from this last April’s draft also make the list of injured players, postponing their debut in the pewter and red for at least another week. Third round cornerback Jamel Dean, fourth round outside linebacker Anthony Nelson, and sixth round wide receiver Scotty Miller are also among the players who are not in Pittsburgh.

Linebacker Jack Cichy is also not traveling as he is still recovering from an ACL injury that sidelined him most of last season, although he is practicing. Undrafted free agent safety D’Cota Dixon, practice squad receiver from a year ago K.J. Brent, and former AAF tight end Scott Ornoff round out the initial nine players who are not playing and did not travel for tomorrow night’s game.

As the Buccaneers plan for a fresh start in the 2019 season, getting these nine players healthy is going to be key for the pewter and red. Considering at least five of these players listed are going to be significant contributors for the Buccaneers, getting to see them in action sooner rather than later would be the best case scenario.