Worst case scenario for the Bucs after Tristan Wirfs' injury could result in no playoffs for the first time in years

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are currently dealing with the fallout of Tristan Wirfs' injury that will cause him to miss an early portion of the season.

While they have guys who can step up, none of them are capable of providing the type of play Wirfs gives on a snap-to-snap basis. That's fine, too, because he's arguably the best left tackle in the league. Hardly anyone at his position can match what he does on the football field.

The biggest unknown with the newest development is when Wirfs actually returns to the field. Tampa Bay Times' Rick Stroud mentioned the possibility of a PUP designation. If that happens, Wirfs will have to sit out the first four games of the season, at minimum.

The Bucs offensive line is a strong group that's entering its second year together as a unit. So the cohesion and chemistry is already there and that will definitely help the front five while Wirfs is out. At the same time, however, an offensive line is only as good as its worst player and we've seen how a Bucs offensive line without Wirfs can really struggle (see the Bucs playoff loss to the Rams in the 2021-2022 postseason).

Charlie Heck, the guy who is expected to replace Wirfs, should be a serviceable replacement, but the Bucs are going to go up against some tough pass rushers in the first four games of the season when assuming the worst-case scenario with Wirfs.

• Atlanta Falcons: The team poured a lot of investment into its pass rush during the offseason, especially on the edges where Wirfs resides. They drafted both Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft and also added veteran Leonard Floyd, who is coming off an 8.5-sack season and has racked up 48.0 total sacks over the last five seasons. Former second-rounder Arnold Ebiketie is also lurking in the mix.
• Houston Texans: The duo of Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson on the edge is about as lethal as it gets in the NFL. They combined for 23.0 sacks in 2025, alone, and have a good shot to record even more while playing on an ascending Texans defense.
• New York Jets: The combo of Jermaine Johnson and Will McDonald isn't the first item that comes to mind when thinking of the top pass rush duos and that's because Johnson tore his Achilles just two games into the 2024 season. He should be ready to go by Week 3 and flashed major potential before the injury. McDonald quietly racked up 10.5 sacks last year, so he's on the upswing, as well. Plus, Quinnen Williams will certainly force the Bucs to focus on the interior, leaving Heck on an island way more often than not.
• Philadelphia Eagles: We all know what the Eagles can do on defense and like Williams and the Jets, the Bucs will have to focus on Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis, which leaves the tackles on an island. Nolan Smith looks like he's on the verge of breaking out in 2025 and Moro Ojomo was a key but underrated piece for the Eagles last year. Azeez Ojulari is also a quiet offseason addition that could really pay off for Vic Fangio's defense, too.

The Falcons swept the Bucs last year and the Texans game is on the road. There's definitely a chance Wirfs' injury could lead to a snowball effect that hampers the offense enough to where the Bucs lose both of those games. The Jets game should still be considered a win, but the Eagles contest is now a bigger question mark than it previously was. 

Worst-case scenario would have the Bucs starting 1-3, but the painful part is they'd already have a division and conference loss in their first two NFC matchups. Both teams are expected to be in the playoff hunt, too, so those losses could really come back to haunt Tampa Bay in a potential tiebreaker scenario. They could miss the playoffs for the first time since 2020 in this universe.

Best-case scenario (and the most realistic one) is obviously the Bucs winning both NFC games and either the Jets or Texans game. They can win every single one of these matchups on paper, but it's going to be a lot harder without Wirfs manning the left side of the offensive line.