MRSA found in a blister on the side of his foot sidelined Nicks the final preseason game, plus the first two weeks of the regular season last summer. He resumed practicing and made starts against New England and Arizona before learning the staph infection that's resistant to many common antibiotics had returned to the same location and gotten into the bone.
Season-ending surgery followed, and the offensive line,Maglia Bryan Cristante, believed to be a strength entering the season, struggled as the Bucs went 4-12.