Bad news out of Tampa Bay on Thursday morning. The Buccaneers announced that defensive end Da'Quan Bowers suffered a torn Achilles' tendon in the Bucs offseason program. The team subsequently announced plans for Bowers to undergo surgery on Friday, pending some final details.
The injury can take as long as 9-12 months to recover, depending on the severity. Bowers will likely miss a large chunk of the 2012 season, if not all of it. Bowers has already tweeted out plans to return in 2012:
2013?? Get real... I'm playing THIS year 2012
— Da'Quan Bowers (@DaQuanBowers91) May 10, 2012
This is tough news for Bowers as he fell in the 2011 NFL Draft due to injury concerns after he had his surgically repaired in the offseason. Bowers was once thought of as one the top picks in the 2011 NFL Draft but tumbled all the way down to the 2nd round, where the Bucs selected him with the 51st overall pick.
This is the second notable pass rusher to have suffered an Achilles' injury with Terrell Suggs undergoing surgery earlier this week.