Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul will get a second opinion on the neck injury he sustained last week after being involved in a single-car accident, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports.
Pierre-Paul was treated and then released from a hospital following the incident Thursday morning in Broward County (South Florida). However, the Buccaneers medical staff grew concerned when they received Pierre-Paul's medical scans and deemed the defensive lineman's injury something "more serious," specifically fractured vertabrae in his neck that could require surgery, Pelissero reported.
JPP is sending out scan results of his neck to "several other doctors" in the coming days for different evaluations, Pelissero added.
If it is determined that Pierre-Paul needs surgery, he would likely undergo a five-to-six-month recovery, which could knock him out for most of the 2019 season. Pelissero reported that there is hope, however, that JPP's injury does not require surgery and will heal on its own in time for Week 1.
After it was reported that the defensive end would seek a second opinion, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht issued the following statement:
"As we stated last week following the news of Jason's auto accident, our immediate concern was for both Jason and his passenger. While Jason was treated and released in south Florida the same day of the accident, we wanted to ensure that our medical team had an opportunity to perform a thorough evaluation here in Tampa, and that process is currently ongoing."
Pierre-Paul joined the Bucs in March 2018 after being traded by the New York Giants and led the team in sacks (12.5) in 16 starts.
