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Jason Pierre-Paul could miss the 2019 season with a fractured neck, but Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians said Friday the team is anticipating he won’t return any earlier than October.
“Very unfortunate,” Arians said. “All we can do is just pray and hope for the best and hope it’s one of those five- or six-month things and go from there.”
The 30-year-old will visit neck specialists for opinions, and ESPN reported he will likely need an operation. NFL Network reported Pierre-Paul could indeed be headed for surgery — which would carry a recovery time of five to six months — but added there is hope the injury could heal on its own, and he could be ready for the start of the season.
The Buccaneers issued a statement that did not acknowledge the specific injury but confirmed the evaluation process is ongoing.
“As we stated last week following the news of Jason’s auto accident, our immediate concern was for both Jason and his passenger,” general manager Jason Licht said in the statement. “While Jason was treated and released in south Florida the same day of the accident, we wanted to ensure that our medical team had an opportunity to perform a thorough evaluation here in Tampa, and that process is currently ongoing.”
The accident occurred around 5 a.m. Thursday in Broward County, Fla., and Pierre-Paul was taken to the hospital and released later that day. NFL Network reported Tuesday that Pierre-Paul’s car went off the road after it hydroplaned during a rain storm.
Pierre-Paul was not ticketed.
He missed time due to an off-field injury in 2015, when he lost a finger and part of a second finger in a fireworks accident in Miami on July 4 of that year.
Pierre-Paul was traded from the New York Giants to the Buccaneers in March 2018, a year after signing a four-year, $62 million extension. He had 12.5 sacks, 20 quarterback hits and 16 tackles for loss in 16 games in 2018, his highest marks since 2014.
–Field Level Media