While there was a lot to celebrate this offseason for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, some pretty bad news rolled in late. Additions like Haason Reddick and Emeka Egbuka were higlights, as well as Chris Godwin re-signing in free agency, but the loss of Tristan Wirfs looms over everything.
It was announced that the All-Pro tackle had undergone offseason knee surgery and there was doubt about when he'd be healthy enough to return. Wirfs isn't expected to miss the whole year -- or even half of it -- but the immediate fear was that he'd miss all training camp and the first quarter of the year, something we moved closer to this week.
As veterans reported to camp on Tuesday, the Bucs officially placed Wirfs on the PUP list. He wasn't the only big-name player to get sidelined, as Godwin was also added to the list, but the loss of Wirfs is a much bigger deal.
Buccaneers placing Tristan Wirfs on the PUP list is a bad break, but not a fatal blow
This isn't a shock, even if it's unfortunate. The expectation was that Wirfs would miss camp and wouldn't play in any of Tampa Bay's preseason games, but all of that makes it even more unlikely that he'll be ready in time for Week 1.
If it makes anyone feel better, Wirfs took to social media after his knee surgery, posting a message for both Buccaneers fans and his teammates on his Instagram account:
"Offseason film study ✌🏾 Can’t wait for year 6, Thank you for all the well wishes, I’ll be back soon 🫡"
If things seem bleak now, at the very least, he's in good spirits, which is a good sign for things to come down the road.
Wirfs missing the first four games of the season is a real possibility, one that's a nightmare scenario for the Bucs. If he ends up hitting the PUP list to start the year, Wirfs wouldn't play in key games against the Texans and Eagles, and would miss games against the Falcons and Jets that the Bucs can't afford to let slip away.
That being said, having Wirfs healthy for the remainder of the season -- specifically a playoff push -- is far more valuable.
It's not an ideal situation, but it's not a fatal blow by any means. Todd Bowles said as much when asked about Wirfs missing time earlier this week, noting that the team navigated injuries to key players last season as well.
Granted, the Bucs went 0-4 in the stretch where both Chris Godwin and Mike Evans were injured, but a division title was secured nonetheless. Not having Wirfs is a bummer but it's not unexpected and now Tampa Bay has a month to figure out how to replace him for as long as he'll be out.
