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Jenna Laine, ESPN Staff Writer
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are placing Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen on season-ending injured reserve because of the knee injury he suffered in training camp last year, the team announced Saturday night.
“We’re gonna be putting him on IR. He’s gonna be done for the year,” Bucs general manager Jason Licht said on the WFLA television broadcast. “The selflessness, the toughness, the leadership he has — we talked a couple weeks ago about this. It was an emotional moment for me, for [coach] Todd [Bowles] when we met with him, I know for everybody involved. But it’s for the best for him.”
The Bucs’ starting center since 2018, Jensen did participate in some training camp practices on a limited basis this year but did not play in any preseason games, leading to speculation that he would not be available to start the season.
Jensen tore his ACL, MCL, PCL and meniscus and fractured his tibial head and cartilage. He missed all of the 2022 regular season but did not undergo surgery and was able to suit up for the Bucs’ wild-card game against the Dallas Cowboys.
The concern with surgery was that there would be scarring and a loss of range of motion. Instead, he focused on regaining the range of motion and physical therapy. Jensen sought opinions from five orthopedic surgeons before making that decision.
Jensen said last month of that game, “Looking back, probably shouldn’t have played.”
He will be replaced by second-year center Robert Hainsey, who started in his place all during the regular season last year.