Major Knee Injury for Tampa Bay Buccaneers Guard

Another catastrophic injury has struck the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive line. Guard Aaron Stinnie, who was in the mix to start this season, tore his ACL/MCL in Saturday's preseason game against the Tennessee Titans, ESPN's Jenna Laine reports:

Source tells me that it’s a torn ACL/MCL for Bucs guard Aaron Stinnie. Really tough break. He was very much pushing for that starting left guard spot.
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) August 21, 2022

Now expected to miss the season, Stinnie's injury is another chapter in an offseason of turnover and turmoil for the Bucs offensive line. It began with Pro Bowler Ali Marpet retiring and starter Alex Cappa departing in free agency. Then in the early days of training camp, Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen hurt his knee. He is currently expected to miss multiple months at the least.

Stinnie has been a key piece of depth for the Bucs since signing with the team in 2019. He has appeared in 17 regular season games for Tampa, but he is best remembered for playing a pivotal role in the team's 2020 Super Bowl run, taking over for injured starter Alex Cappa at the right guard spot for the final 3 games of the postseason. He was competing for the opportunity to replace Ali Marpet at left guard. With Stinnie now lost for the season, it appears either second-round rookie Luke Goedeke or veteran Nick Leverett will be thrust into the spotlight.