The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are getting healthier at training camp, with several key players returning to practice during Tuesday’s joint session with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Names like Vita Vea, Tristan Wirfs, Benjamin Morrison, Zyon McCollum, and Cade Otton were all spotted on the field getting work in rather than rehabbing on the sideline with trainers. That’s huge for a team that dealt with a rash of injuries over the first couple weeks of camp.

However, one absence continues to stand out, and it’s starting to have real implications for the Buccaneers’ linebacker depth.

Christian Rozeboom’s extended absence puts the Buccaneers’ linebacker depth in a tight spot

Christian Rozeboom missed practice again on Tuesday. He hasn’t practiced, or played, since the sessions leading up to the New York Jets preseason game, and there’s no clarity on his progress or status heading into this week. If he ends up missing another joint practice session and then Friday’s game, it’s easy to see why Rozeboom might not make the 53-man roster.

The situation becomes even more concerning when you factor in that SirVocea Dennis is dealing with a groin injury. That means the Bucs’ inside linebacker room is getting thinner by the day. Meanwhile, guys like Caden Fordham, John Bullock, and Nick Jackson are out there playing well in Rozeboom’s place and stacking reps that he simply isn’t receiving.

The veteran linebacker just hasn’t been able to log meaningful practice time this summer. He missed mandatory minicamp due to the birth of his child, which is completely reasonable. However, you have to tack that absence onto the nearly two weeks of missed practice and two preseason games he’s sat out since. He hasn’t been able to show Tampa Bay what he can do in pads or in a game setting, and that weighs heavily when the front office evaluates the roster.

The roster math works against Rozeboom

The Buccaneers are most likely going to carry three quarterbacks, and that decision creates a snowball effect on the rest of the roster. Tampa Bay will probably keep four inside linebackers, but wouldn’t you rather carry the four guys you’ve actually seen and know what they can and can’t do? At this point, Rozeboom is a complete wild card compared to the players who have been on the field consistently.

That said, not all hope is lost. If the injury is severe enough, the Buccaneers could use one of their two short-term injured reserve designations on cutdown day and stash Rozeboom without having to worry about another team picking him up after roster cuts. They could also be simply content with letting him nurse his injury in the early-goings of the season, even if that’s unideal.  Both options would keep him in the building while buying time for recovery.

There’s also his contract. Cutting Rozeboom wouldn’t be a giant loss, as the Buccaneers guaranteed $950k of his $1.55 million salary. The net loss would be around $350k after accounting for the $950k in dead cap, plus $600k in savings.

Either way, Rozeboom needs to start getting healthier and get back on the practice field. If he continues to miss time and the Buccaneers simply don’t know how he can operate in their defense, odds are they’re going to go with somebody who does.