The Bucs were cautiously optimistic that Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen would be able to return to action in the 2023 season.

After all, even though he opted not to have surgery and instead chose to use stem cell treatments and rest, Jensen returned to action just over five months following a devastating knee injury that occurred on the second day of training camp. After practicing for a few weeks – which amounted to a few days – Jensen was deemed healthy enough to play in the Bucs’ playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.

But Jensen was unable to practice on consecutive days at any point during the first two weeks of training camp, and he never participated in any 11-on-11 team periods. His last practice was before the preseason opener against Pittsburgh.

During the third quarter of the preseason finale against Baltimore, Tampa Bay general manager Jason Licht broke the news that Jensen’s knee had not come around and that the 32-year-old center would be placed on season-ending injured reserve.

Bucs C Ryan Jensen and run game coordinator Harold Goodwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

After the Bucs’ 26-20 win over the Ravens, Jensen addressed the media for just the second time this summer and was emotional about missing a second straight season.

“I don’t think there was ever necessarily a setback,” Jensen said. “I was feeling good coming into camp like I had communicated to you guys in that first presser that I did with you guys. Just through our plan that we had going day on, day off, it was feeling pretty good the first couple of days. It started to get a little bit sore and then painful in the lateral compartment.

“When I first got hurt – after my first imaging – the biggest concern was that lateral compartment with the cartilage damage and stuff that happened on that side of the knee. Everything else pretty much healed how we expected it to heal. All the ligaments are fine and intact, it’s just that the lateral compartment is kind of deteriorating a little bit. Now, it’s just managing that and figuring out how to make it feel better.”

Ryan Jensen’s Bucs Career Appears To Be Over

The problem going forward for Ryan Jensen is that knee cartilage doesn’t grow back on its own. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. Ligaments can be surgically sewn together or replaced using cadavers. But cartilage damage is tough to overcome. Even though advances have been made with stem cell therapy, the results aren’t always predictably effective.

Bucs C Ryan Jensen – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

And they certainly haven’t worked well enough for Jensen at this stage of his recovery.

With Jensen turning 33 next year, he’s likely played his last down in Tampa Bay – and the NFL.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles spoke about the concerns the team had with Jensen’s knee this offseason and leading into training camp.

“We thought he gutted it out right there [against Dallas], as he did in practice, but come spring and then summer we talked about a lot of things going into that,” Bowles said. “It could have gone either way. He could progress, but none of us [in the Bucs’ brass] – at least I’m not a doctor from that standpoint – so we listened to medical advice and everything else.

“Ryan is as tough as they come. As [training camp] started progressing and we started not seeing anything (improvement) you know it was kind of a tough deal. And that was something he had to come to grips with. As he came to grips with it … you talk about it all the time, but we never talked about him just shutting it down. Maybe we started having conversations a week ago and we tried to work some things out going forward from that standpoint. Then we finally decided to make it public this weekend.”

Bowles said that the fact that Jensen played in the playoff game didn’t necessarily give the Bucs a false sense of security over the health of his knee.

“We had optimism, but the medical staff always warned us that it would be touch-and-go from that standpoint,” Bowles added. “So we weren’t too high or too low from that standpoint because they always warned us that it could go the other way.”

What Happened With Ryan Jensen’s Knee Against The Cowboys?

Even though Ryan Jensen struggled mightily in the playoff game against Dallas in January – and his knee wasn’t 100 percent at the time – with starting center Robert Hainsey banged up and backup center Nick Leverett out for the Cowboys game, the Bucs needed their Pro Bowl center. Jensen wanted to play in that game, which was perfect timing, but it might have been the last NFL game he suited up for.

Bucs C Ryan Jensen and LG Luke Goedeke – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Jensen had to have suffered some kind of damage or setback with his knee, right? How could he have practiced daily leading up to that game and then play every offensive snap back in January, yet he was unable to practice on back-to-back days in training camp – seven months later – despite not even participating in 11-on-11 team periods at any point?

After the Ravens game on Saturday night, Jensen denied having a setback following the 31-14 loss to the Cowboys.

“I don’t think so,” Jensen said. “We did a bunch of imaging before and after that game and there was nothing glaring. Obviously, a little bit of swelling in that MRI postgame, but there’s nothing that happened in that game that would have set me back.”

Yet something had to have happened to his knee in that Dallas game due to him rushing back too soon. There’s really no other explanation despite Jensen’s denials. And it’s not that Jensen is lying, it’s just that he’s not accepting the truth.

The fact that his practice status got worse – not better – seven months after that Cowboys game speaks volumes. The Bucs did the right thing in shutting him down for the rest of the year and not creating any false hope that Jensen could come back at some point in the 2023 season when he’s clearly not going to be able to with the cartilage damage he’s suffered.

“There’s so much unknown with that (possibly going on short-term I.R.) that the worst thing to do is to rush back on that and make a bigger problem than is already there,” Jensen said.

But isn’t that what already happened when Jensen rushed back to play with Tom Brady one last time in the playoff game against Dallas?

Certainly seems like it, right?

Why Weren’t The Bucs Better Prepared At Center?

Some will criticize Bucs general manager Jason Licht for not being better prepared at center in case Ryan Jensen’s knee didn’t come around, which is what ultimately happened with the former Pro Bowler going on injured reserve. It’s worth noting that Jensen’s entire 2023 salary of $11.335 was already guaranteed – whether he was on the roster or on I.R. That means that the Bucs already had a starting-caliber center cap charge on this year’s roster regardless of whether Jensen could play or not.

Former Wisconsin C Joe Tippmann – Photo by: USA Today

Robert Hainsey proved he could be the starter a year ago when he went wire-to-wire as Jensen’s replacement for all 17 games in the regular season. Hainsey has gotten bigger and stronger this offseason, and both the Bucs and Jensen are excited about his fit in Dave Canales’ new scheme.

“Rob has taken some major steps from last year to this year – it’s awesome to see him come into his own,” Jensen said Saturday night. “This offense is great for him. A lot more zone-type schemes and stuff like that. From what I’ve seen, he’s been doing a fantastic job and it’s been awesome to watch that progression with him because he’s a young player. He gets the game and he loves the game. It’s awesome to see that.”

The center class in the 2023 NFL Draft wasn’t particularly as strong or as deep as the 2024 class appears to be on paper. Wisconsin’s J0e Tippmann, whom the Bucs interviewed at the NFL Scouting Combine, was the first one off the board with the 43rd overall pick to the Jets where he is currently the backup. The Bucs drafted North Dakota State left tackle Cody Mauch, who has already won the starting right guard job, a few spots later with the 48th overall pick.

Tampa Bay had a higher grade on Mauch than it did on Minnesota center John Michael Schmitz, who was the 57th overall pick by the Giants, or Penn State center Juice Scruggs, who was drafted at No. 62 overall by the Texans near the end of the second round. Schmitz and Scruggs are slated to start at center for their respective teams. Arkansas center Ricky Stromberg was drafted in the third round with the 97th overall pick by the Commanders where he is currently the No. 3 center.

The Bucs opted not to draft a center on Day 3 given the fact that reserve lineman Nick Leverett can also snap, and the team wound up with three other offensive linemen who could play center in practice-squad candidate John Molchon, offseason addition Michael Niese and Chris Murray, an undrafted free agent.

Bucs C Robert Hainsey and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

With Tampa Bay having to eat over $75 million in dead salary cap money this year, including $35 million from former quarterback Tom Brady, the team couldn’t just go out and sign another starting-caliber center in free agency. The Bucs didn’t have the cap space to even sign a middle-of-the-road starting center for $5 million per year this offseason with Jensen’s salary guaranteed for 2023.

If the best-case scenario had happened with Jensen’s knee coming around and improving by training camp, then spending a second or third-round pick on a center would’ve been excessive, especially with Hainsey having 17 starts under his belt. That Day 2 pick very well could have wound up as the No. 3 center in that scenario, which would not have been ideal.

The Bucs will hope that Hainsey can be an every-game starter again for the 2023 season and then evaluate his progress. At the very least it seems likely that Jensen’s career with Tampa Bay is over and that the team will likely draft a center next year to either back up Hainsey or challenge him for the starting spot in 2024.