“The More He Did On It, The Worse It Got”
August 27th, 2023
Todd Bowles
The way Bucs coach Todd Bowles spoke about Ryan Jensen’s knee, it sure sounded as if the Bucs and Jensen had no other choice.
Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht announced the news that Jensen is done for the 2023 season and would be placed on injured reserve during Licht’s third-quarter visit to the WFLA-TV broadcast booth last night.
Asked about it after the Bucs-Crows game, Bowles suggested the way Jensen’s knee responded to workouts, there was basically no way he could play.
“The more he did on it, the worse it got,” Bowles said. “You’re healed when you don’t do anything – you’re not healed once you start working on it and it’s not responding.”
That sounds terrible and beyond frustrating for Jensen. For most injuries, healing means you can get back on the field. For Jensen, the opposite was true.
So in a sense, Jensen’s knee only got worse when he tried to play football, not better.
August 27th, 2023 at 3:25 am
Sucks
August 27th, 2023 at 3:49 am
My favorite player…
Take care of yourself Jensen,it isn’t worth it.
August 27th, 2023 at 4:00 am
The fact is it didn’t matter what Jensen did, surgery or stem cell therapy he wasn’t playing football this year. He did the only thing that gave him a chance but it didn’t work. The cartridge damage will probably prevent him from ever playing again. 2nd guessing him or playing the what if game is just masturbatory.
August 27th, 2023 at 5:20 am
Jensen will get paid this year, call it his golden parrachute. Nice that he’s hanging around this year, another coach on the sideline. My guess is he’ll retire after the season.
August 27th, 2023 at 5:20 am
Yep, looks like we’ll be going C and RT next draft…and maybe a QB in the 3rd….but we seem to be good there for now…I know, its still early, but I really like what Im seeing with Baker and Trask, pleasantly surprised.
August 27th, 2023 at 6:39 am
Yes, football puts more strain on the knee than walking or watching television.
August 27th, 2023 at 7:00 am
It’s unfortunate that his knee did not respond well to attempting to return to football activities.
I hope Jensen made the best decision he could by opting for stem cell treatment rather than surgery. Being able to stand and walk comfortably the rest of his life without pain should be goal number one.
While he won’t be able to play again, stem cell therapy may help him for the future. The good thing is that he can continue to have the stem cell therapy to help him with discomfort and maybe even continue to heal.
And the body sometimes has been shown to even heal certain tears on their own through time.
Jensen has been an invaluable part of the Bucs’ offensive line and gave it an attitude more than any other Buc I remember.
His desire to want to play in Brady’s last year here, really shined through. The attempt to play though the pain and instability for the one game last year is amazing and inspirational.
I wish him all the best in his recovery and hope his life is filled with many other successes,
August 27th, 2023 at 7:00 am
So many people on here owe Joe an apology. Ohhh Jensen gonna suit up week one no doubt about. Dudes career is over but the everyday fan thinks they know more than someone who’s job is to know wtf is going on with this team. There was an article talking about Jensen possibly missing beyond week one and everyone here ripped joe apart. Now look at yous.
August 27th, 2023 at 7:43 am
Reading comprehension skills aren’t great for some
August 27th, 2023 at 7:48 am
It sure looks like Jensen is finished. I will be surprised if he comes back from this
August 27th, 2023 at 8:11 am
For those that suggested the Bucs were tanking this year, the restructuring of Ryan Jensen’s salary in March to me is one of the biggest signs that they were not tanking.
They converted $11.33M of 2023 salary into signing bonus, adding one void year, clearing $9.068M of cap for Tampa.
Jensen won’t retire, because he will lose out on some money if he does. He is due a roster bonus in early March next year. So, the Bucs will cut him very early in the off season. We will have a 16 million dead cap hit.
August 27th, 2023 at 8:26 am
There is a reason why almost all players get surgery…..Ryan didn’t……and is paying the price.
August 27th, 2023 at 8:47 am
That sucks. Feel bad for Jensen. It makes me wonder if he’ll ever be able to play again
August 27th, 2023 at 9:08 am
“Five doctors recommmended surgery” was in the Times sports section today. Jensen did not take their advise so he can take the money & run.
August 27th, 2023 at 9:18 am
Yet, he was able to play in the playoff game 7 months ago, 5 months after the injury!? Is there culpability or medical negligence by the Bucs medical staff that opens them up to a lawsuit?
I too don’t know why he didn’t opt for the surgery.
August 27th, 2023 at 9:23 am
If Stem Cell Therapy was the “standard of care” for his multiple injuries everyone would get it – and they don’t.
August 27th, 2023 at 9:48 am
So for you guys pounding the table saying surgery, are we to assume Jensen and Joe’s were lying about what would happen? All of them said if surgery was done, then he’d walk with a permanent limp and his career would be immediately done, no chance.
August 27th, 2023 at 9:58 am
Two things can be true Leopold.
1. The gold standard of care for returning to high level sports after an ACL tear is surgical repair.
2. Ryan Jensen took an approach that he preferred through there were more doctors suggesting for him to have the surgery.
By the way, where are you getting that all the surgeons said he would walk with a permanent limp. That seems very, very made up.
August 27th, 2023 at 10:47 am
Geno – the joes have previously reported that, none of us know of that is true but we should trust what the player and team are telling us. It would be in the best interest of at least the team to have him out there playing. Depending on how their contracts get paid it might be in his best interest to be playing as well.
Sitting him is the right call, let him try to recover and if he is still having issues come next year we release him then.
August 27th, 2023 at 1:56 pm
i hope big red can enjoy his well earned & deserved retirement..
August 27th, 2023 at 2:11 pm
Why not trading for a Centre – still some decent folks in the market. O-Line not experienced and deep enough
August 27th, 2023 at 6:37 pm
Surgery would not of helped! His ligaments are healed. Some people get this info and just disregard it cause surgery just feels like it was right. It wasn’t. Surgery does not grow back damaged cartilage. He knew was wrecked. He will be lucky not to walk with a limp the rest of his life. It sounds like the doctors told him this and they just held out hope.
August 27th, 2023 at 7:08 pm
Stabnglassman. I remember when he hurt it. There was talk that he had a choice or surgery or trying to allow it to heal. He chose the later, as I remember. Not saying I’m any doctor. But why would have had a choice of surgery or not to have it, if it wouldn’t have helped?
August 27th, 2023 at 8:16 pm
Mark.
They used stem cell therapy and it gave him the best chance to recover more fully. He was told surgery wasn’t a better option. His liniments are healed. He has major damage to his cartilage and surgery doesn’t repair it. Stem cell might help it but probably not in time to play football again. But it gave him a chance. It seems the reason Bowles and other were so critic about the knee was because it was really bad news. Jensen is so tough and he was able to play on adrenaline in the playoffs so it gave them hope. He got mri imaging on it before and after the cowboys game and was told he didn’t injure it further playing on it. It’s more of a pain tolerance thing at this point.
Just fyi I’m no doctor but I have spoken to an orthopedic surgeon friend of mine in the last 24 hours about Jensen’s situation. He hasn’t seen his imaging so he just spoke to me about it in generalities. He followed it and said he had the best of the best caring for him.
August 27th, 2023 at 9:51 pm
Fools this is when a gm and coach look like amateurs. Apparently hainsey is every bit the man Jensen is because we didn’t add anyone to the competition for center. I’m a Jason licht fan but not today