Cody Grimm was a bit of a rookie sensation. A seventh-round draft pick who took over as starting free safety in Week 3 after Tanard Jackson was suspended for the year, he turned into a consistent player on defense. He was a sure tackler whose best work was done in run support. He also made sure that Sabby Piscitelli wasn't getting on the field, for which we must be eternally grateful. Unfortunately, Cody Grimm broke his leg in the Week 12 game against the Baltimore Ravens. Fortunately, it appears that his rehab is going well, and he's now working on getting back to full strength. He should be ready for any hypothetical training camp. Because Tanard Jackson won't be back with the team until Week 3 at the earliest, Cody Grimm should have little trouble holding on to his job for the start of the season.
With news of Cody Grimm, we now have all three injured second-year players healthy. Gerald McCoy and Arrelious Benn have progressed well from their respective injuries, and should be ready for the start of the season. To have all these players back should be important for a team that was riddled with injuries last season. But there are a number of players that may still be working on their injuries. We've heard nothing yet of Aqib Talib, though the latter certainly has bigger problems right now than his injury. Kareem Huggins is an unknown as well, though the fact that the Bucs never tendered the restricted free agent an offer may be telling. His knee injury was supposedly devastating, and an injury like that can stop a career of an inexperienced young speedster dead in its tracks. We also haven't heard anything either negatively or positively of Quincy Black or Davin Joseph, although their respective injuries weren't particularly serious. A fractured forearm and fractured foot usually heal relatively quickly and don't pose longterm problems. The same is true for Jeff Faine's triceps injury, who came back from a similar injury in 2009.