Todd Bowles discusses Ryan Jensen's status for Week 18

Tampa Bay has remained secretive on the specifics of starting center Ryan Jensen's knee injury throughout the regular season. Jensen went down early in training camp and there was immediate fear that he'd miss the entire year. However, he seemingly avoided surgery and has been rehabbing ever since.

Following a lengthy stint on Injured Reserve, the Buccaneers designated the veteran to return from IR on Wednesday, December 28. Jensen has been ramping up his workload in practice over the past week and officially has until January 18 to be promoted to the active roster.

It's been nearly a week since Jensen returned to the practice field but head coach Todd Bowles isn't rushing to provide updates.

"Not right now," Bowles said on Monday. "He's just working every day. No update on him."

The Buccaneers have clinched a Wild Card berth and will host a game in Raymond James Stadium later in January. Prior to that, the team will travel to Atlanta to face the Falcons in a game where Bowles is planning to play his starters.

As of earlier in the week, Jensen was not among those expected to see the field.

"Not at this time," Bowles said. "We'll see how the week goes."

After not seeing live action in nearly a year, it would be a tough task to ask Jensen to suit up and contribute significantly in a postseason game.

If anything, Bowles is remaining non-committal on his status rather than just flat-out ruling him out.

"We're just gauging his progress," Bowles said on Wednesday. "He's status quo – if anything changes, I'll let you guys know."

Second-year center Robert Hainsey has played admirably in relief of Jensen after not seeing a ton of time a season ago. Would it make sense to keep Hainsey in his current role while shifting the veteran down the line if he's healthy enough to return?

Again, not much of an answer from Bowles.

"I would like to see him come back before I make that decision," Bowles said.

So, Jensen could play, or, he could not play. Either way, it sounds like the Buccaneers won't make an official decision until closer to kickoff.

The 6-foot-4, 319-pound offensive lineman signed with Tampa Bay as an unrestricted free agent in 2018 after beginning his professional career with Baltimore. He started all 71 games, including playoffs, during his first four seasons with the franchise. Jensen was named to the Pro Bowl for his performance in 2021.

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