The Bucs could be without two of their top defensive players to start training camp.
Defensive tackle Vita Vea sustained an unspecified hand injury and underwent a minor surgical procedure a few weeks ago. He is expected to miss some time at the start of training camp, but is not expected to have any limitations once the regular season begins.
On Friday, outside linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul underwent arthroscopic knee surgery and will need three to four weeks to recover. The Bucs begin training camp July 28.
Vea, 25, anchored the Bucs run defense that ranked tops in the NFL, allowing only 73.8 yards per game, playing next to veteran Ndamukong Suh.
A calf injury forced Vea, the Bucs’ first-round pick in 2018, to miss the entire preseason and the first three games of his rookie season. But last year, Vea was one of the Bucs’ most dominant players.
Vea also became the first player since J.J. Watt in 2014 to record a sack and catch a touchdown pass in the same game when he hauled in 1-yard scoring toss from Jameis Winston in a 35-22 win at Atlanta. The 6-foot-4, 347-pound Vea is believed to be the heaviest player to score a touchdown.
Vea was a fixture in the Bucs defense, playing 749 snaps on defense (66 percent) and 109 on special teams (22 percent).
The Bucs don’t have much depth at defensive tackle. In addition to Suh, who is 33 and re-signed a one-year contract, Rakeem Nunez-Roches has the most experienced as a fifth-year pro who played 293 defensive snaps last season.
Defensive end Will Gholston also is capable of moving inside. The Bucs drafted Nebraska defensive tackle Khalil Davis in the sixth round. They also have Benning Potoa’e, an undrafted free agent and Vea’s former teammate at the University of Washington.
Vea had a career-high 35 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hits and four tackles for loss last season.
Pierre-Paul posted a video on Snapchat of him preparing to undergo arthroscopic surgery Friday to repair some torn cartilage.
It is unusual for players to have elective surgery this close to the start of training camp, but Pierre-Paul was feeling some discomfort in his knee while working out. Last season, he missed the first six games with a cervical fracture in his neck that he sustained in one-car accident two months before training camp.
But Pierre-Paul was dominant when he returned, recording 8.5 sacks in 10 games.
While both injuries were relatively minor and shouldn’t affect either player during the 2020 season, it’s still not a great way to start training camp. But in a way, some younger players who didn’t benefit from offseason organized team activities will get some added reps.
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June 27, 2020 at 10:00AM
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Vita Vea will miss time in training camp after hand surgery - Tampa Bay Times
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