Buccaneers Add OL Depth Following Hutcherson's Injury

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made rookie offensive lineman Sadarius Hutcherson's placement on the injured reserve official on Tuesday morning after the news broke on Monday night. In order to fill Hutcherson's void, the Buccaneers signed offensive tackle Jake Benzinger, the team announced on Tuesday.

Benzinger, 6-foot-7, 295 pounds, has yet to appear in an NFL game after signing with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent over a year ago. He spent part of this offseason with the Indianapolis Colts but was waived a week ago.

A Wake Forest alum, Benzinger would start 40 games for the Demon Deacons while primarily aligning as a right tackle. Benzinger was named an All-ACC Honorable Mention offensive lineman at the end of his 2019 redshirt senior season.

It will be interesting to see where the Buccaneers insert Benzinger into their depth alignment. Despite his experience at tackle, Tampa Bay has reps to replace at guard with Hutcherson now inactive. Earl Watford, who signed with the team last week, should be able to fill in for Hutcherson on the second team but could be asked to move around the line as other injuries occur.

With Benzinger's addition, Tampa Bay must waive two players before the 4 P.M. 85-man roster cutdowns on Tuesday. The Bucs began the process by waiving three players on Sunday.

Stay tuned to AllBucs for further coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' preseason updates, and other news and analysis. Follow along on social media at @SIBuccaneers on Twitter and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sports Illustrated on Facebook.

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