First-round pick Calijah Kancey gets carted off at Buccaneers training camp

Injuries are unavoidable and as much as teams hope they don’t occur during training camp, they do. And that’s what happened at Buccaneers practice on Sunday.

First-round draft pick Calijah Kancey went down with a strained calf during drills and was eventually carted off.

Following practice, head coach Todd Bowles told the media that his projected starter will undergo an MRI which will detail the severity of the injury. But Bowles, like many others, are hoping it’s not serious and their young defensive lineman can return soon.

“He’s adapting to the scheme, mentally, and then he was adding his physical part to it,” Bowles said. “He was putting it together quicker than normal rookies do. Hopefully it’s not that bad and he can get back.”

Fortunately, several reports indicate he did not appear to be in pain which is a good sign for the young rookie.

Tampa Bay took Kancey with the 19th-overall pick in this past April’s NFL Draft.