Earlier this summer, Buccaneers guard Carl Nicks said that the toe injury that cost him the second half of last season was one that he would have to deal with his whole life.
The implication was that Nicks and the Bucs would have to manage his workload as a result of the injury in order to keep Nicks on the field, but they’ll need to get him back on the field first. Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano announced at his press conference Monday that Nicks is out indefinitely as a result of an blister on his toes that got infected. Nicks is currently being treated by doctors, but the only sense that Schiano offered in terms of a timeframe was that playing in Week One is a realistic possibility.
While it’s not the same injury that kept Nicks out last season, it’s hardly a positive development for a player who already has enough on his plate when it comes to foot injuries.
One of the biggest reasons to expect a better offensive performance for the Bucs this season was that they would have Nicks and Davin Joseph back as their starting guards after both missed major amounts of time last season. Joseph has started ramping up his workload after the torn patellar tendon that sidelined him all last season, but Nicks’ toe issue is one that’s making it hard to count on him for 16 games this season.