TAMPA, Fla. -- Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David suffered a sprained MCL against the Washington Redskins, jeopardizing his status for Sunday's game against the New York Giants, a source told ESPN Tuesday.
David, the Buccaneers' weakside linebacker and one of their top players on defense, underwent an MRI on Monday to confirm the diagnosis. The typical recovery timetable is two to four weeks, but nothing has been decided yet. The team did, however, re-sign linebacker Kevin Minter on Tuesday.
David's injury happened with 12:09 left in the third quarter, when he was making a tackle on Redskins wide receiver Maurice Harris. David was on the field for several seconds; he was able to limp off under his own power and later returned to finish the game. He recorded seven tackles.
David had been the Bucs' constant presence at linebacker this season. Middle linebacker Kwon Alexander suffered a torn ACL in Week 7 and strongside linebacker Kendell Beckwith still on the reserve/non-football injury list after an offseason car accident, which resulted in ankle surgery.
David's 603 career solo tackles and 12 fumble recoveries are the most in the league at any position since 2012.
The team also announced that offensive guard Evan Smith and running back Shaun Wilson have been placed on injured reserve.
