The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are currently dealing with some big injuries to their offensive line. Mainly, the interior, where Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen is slated to miss months and guard Aaron Stinnie, one of the players competing for the starting left guard position, is out for the year with a torn ACL and MCL.

But offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich isn't worried. He's been in the NFL in some capacity since 2003. He knows injuries are much more likely to happen than not.

Simply put: it's life in the NFL.

"That's the game of football," Leftwich told reporters after practice on Wednesday. "Injuries [are] always coming. Obviously, you hate to lose someone like Ryan [Jensen], who is so important to us. But that's why we try to have depth at every position.

"… 'Next man up' is not just a saying around here. We try to have good guys backing up [the starters] so if [injuries] were to happen we can be in a good spot."

The Buccaneers' strategy of having as many quality backups will certainly be tested in 2022. Mainly in the form of rookie guard Luke Goedeke and second-year center Robert Hainsey. There's also 25-year-old UDFA Nick Leverett, who's really impressed the staff over the last couple of seasons and has been in the mix for the starting left guard job.

But, while the thought of the aforementioned trio's combined inexperience and lack of established presence is a scary one, there's a silver lining that comes along with it.

"Obviously, when guys are down, you get to evaluate other guys," said Leftwich. "… You really get an opportunity to see [center Robert] Hainsey in certain positions. You get to see [guard] Luke [Goedeke] in certain positions that maybe he wouldn't have been in so early. And you get to grade that and react to that and watch these guys get in tough situations.

"You get to actually put them in tough situations [in order] to see how they're going to respond. It's always great to get an evaluation of as many guys as possible."

Yes, it sucks that Jensen -who is one of the best centers in the NFL- won't be able to contribute to another potential Super Bowl run, but, there's a chance the Buccaneers would've never seen Hainsey take meaningful snaps in a real game without the injury. Jensen signed a three-year deal back in March and both contracts are set to expire after the 2024 season.

The Buccaneers would've been faced with a difficult decision in whether or not to re-sign Hainsey, assuming Jensen stayed healthy all three years of his contract.

But now, they potentially get a full year's worth of meaningful snaps. If Hainsey shows he can be a serviceable starter, it will make the Buccaneers' future decision a lot more of an informed decision and an easier one, as well.

"You didn't get an opportunity to see this many snaps until Ryan went down," Leftwich said regarding Hainsey's increased amount of playing time.

The same goes with Goedeke and Leverett. The Buccaneers now have two players under 25-years-old to evaluate, as opposed to Stinnie, who will be 29-years-old when next season starts.

If these guys pan out like the Buccaneers hope, then the Buccaneers may have just found them a future foundation for their offensive line. The trio/quartet of Hainsey, Goedeke/Leverett, and All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs, who is just 23 himself, could set the offensive line's foundation for years to come.

In fact, the Buccaneers could very well have their offensive line set for the next 10 years if everything shakes out like it's supposed to.

And to think, they may never have received the chance if it weren't for this unfortunate run of injuries.

You can check out Leftwich's presser below:

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