As Wirfs continues to work back from his offseason knee surgery and revert to being a player after spending the past couple of months as a coach, Tampa Bay now has another concern up front. Right tackle Luke Goedeke left the game in the second quarter with a foot injury and was immediately ruled out and replaced by backup swing tackle Charlie Heck.
Buccaneers T Luke Goedeke is OUT for the remainder of today's game (foot). pic.twitter.com/S0buZJS1sG
— Buccaneers Communications (@BuccaneersComms) September 15, 2025
Bucs OL Left Extremely Thin After RT Luke Goedeke Leaves Week 2 Game
Luke Goedeke’s departure from the game leaves the Bucs’ offensive line even thinner. With Charlie Heck filling in, the only other backups that were active for Monday night’s game were undrafted rookie Ben Chukwuma and 2024 sixth-round pick Elijah Klein. While Tampa Bay is high on Chukwuma’s potential and Klein’s versatility, that is not a lot of depth considering the injuries the team has dealt with.
Bucs OT Charlie Heck – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Goedeke’s status going in was a question mark after he missed two practices during the week. Ultimately, “Luke the Lifter” could not tough it out, which is an unfortunate development for someone recently made a $90 million man.
It also meant the offensive line had to insert Heck in a spot he did not get as many reps at during the offseason. The team showed a lack of faith in his abilities after moving center Graham Barton to left tackle for Week 1, going as far to elevate Michael Jordan to left guard from the practice squad and bump left guard Ben Bredeson to center.
That left him riding the pine, but now, the Bucs have to trust Barton and Heck to be the bookend tackles against star Texans defensive ends Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter. It will be interesting to see how things go for the rest of the game, and what update head coach Todd Bowles has in his post-game press conference.
Adam Slivon has covered the Bucs for four seasons with PewterReport.com as a Bucs Beat Writer, Social Media Manager, and Podcaster. Adam started as an intern during his time at the University of Tampa, where he graduated with a degree in Sport Management in May 2023.
In addition to his regular written content, he appears every Thursday on the Pewter Report Podcast, has a weekly YouTube Top 10 Takeaways video series, and leads the managing of the site's social media platforms.
As a Wisconsin native, he spent his childhood growing up on a farm and enjoys Culver's, kringle, and a quality game of cornhole. You can find him most often on X @AdamLivsOn.
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