Ryan Jensen's Injury Update is Bad News for Bucs Super Bowl Odds
Tom Brady's farewell tour is off to a rough start. First, Leonard Fournette showed up to camp overweight and now one of his top offensive lineman is hurt with a potentially-serious leg injury.
Bucs Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen hurt his left knee during practice today and was carted off the field. The initial reports said Jensen threw his helmet as soon as the injury occurred, an always-ominous sign, and Bucs GM Jason Licht painted an equally-concerning picture after practice.
Bucs GM Jason Licht days he feels terrible for Ryan Jensen but has no update on his knee injury. Says it may be several days to diagnosed due to swelling. “We’re hoping for the best.”
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) July 28, 2022
Ryan Jensen's Injury Status "Not Good" According to Reports
Via Adam Schefter of ESPN, a source indicated that Jansen's injured knee is, "not looking good" after performing several tests. While nothing has been made official as of Thursday afternoon, it appears the Buccaneers' center is on track to miss a considerable amount of time.
Buccaneers still are doing tests on the injured knee of center Ryan Jensen and hope to know more in next few days, but one source said this afternoon that it’s “not looking good”.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 28, 2022
Jensen is the centerpiece of a Bucs offensive line that played a huge, and under appreciated, role in their Super Bowl win two seasons ago. Losing him for an extended period of time would weaken a unit that's already dealing with several other issues, and would be a devastating blow for Bucs Super Bowl bettors -- they're currently +600 at WynnBET to win the Super Bowl, tops in the NFL.
All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs is still recovering from offseason ankle surgery from an injury suffered at the end of last year. The Bucs also have two new guards following the retirement of 2021 Pro Bowl selection Ali Marpet and Alex Cappa signing with the Bengals in free agency.
Brady has always been most vulnerable when defenses apply pressure up the middle, so the importance of Jensen's role as the signal caller and center anchor for that unit can't be overstated. The Bucs odds to win the Super Bowl likely won't change even if Jensen is out for the season, but I would be very nervous to bet them to win it all if he is.
We'll see what the final diagnosis is for Jensen and adjust our opinion on betting the Bucs accordingly, but the first reports aren't great.