The Buccaneers have been no strangers to injuries in recent weeks. The loss of Ryan Jensen was not in a vacuum. Other talented players are following.
The Buccaneers are going to need to hope that they are as good at replacing depth players in free agency as they are at replacing their stars.
It seems like this should be easy when you actually think about it, but the Bucs are going to have their hands full trying to keep up with the rampant injuries they are facing as the season rolls closer.
As it stands, Ryan Jensen is out for all or most of the season, and then Aaron Stinnie and Cam Gill went on IR, ending their seasons before they really begin.
Stinnie seemed obvious when we all saw it happen in real time, but Gill being out for the season comes as more of a surprise.
It had looked like Gill was going to be a bigger part of the defense in 2022 in addition to his special teams reps, but that chance is gone now with Gill not suiting up for the Bucs during their upcoming Super Bowl campaign.
As much as a fourth pass-rusher doesn’t seem like they should make a massive impact, Gill’s loss is still going to hurt this team. The Bucs were wise to go out and target former edge Carl Nassib, but even he isn’t enough to wear all the hats that Gill did.
It was also a fun thought to picture Gill coming back to round out a quality five-man pass-rushing core, but that dream is now dead.
We now turn to the future for Cam Gill and his chance to solidify his role on the roster.
As for the rest of the players, their goal remains unchanged. The team marches ahead, but we should all wish the best to Gill.
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