Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Dirk Koetter on Vita Vea injury: 'Better than we thought'

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Dirk Koetter expressed optimism for the health of Vita Vea on Tuesday despite the team's first-round pick being spotted in a walking boot on his left leg and using a scooter to get around.

Vea, who was the 12th overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, raised concerns after he exited Sunday's practice on a cart. WFLA8 posted a video of Vea using a scooter to move around during practice on Tuesday.

"It was better than we thought," Koetter said, per the Tampa Bay Times. "What Vita described when it happened was what you would think when a guy tore his Achilles. Thankfully it's not that, it's a calf injury. He's gonna be out for right now, but it's not what it could have been.

"So, in that respect, we're better off than we thought we were."

Koetter said Vea will be sidelined for "a little bit" and that other updates would be issued when warranted.

Vea was named the 2017 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year after recording 43 tackles and 3.5 sacks last season at the University of Washington. He also helped lead the Huskies to the College Football Playoff in the 2016 campaign.

The 6-foot-4, 347-pound Vea is expected to be paired with six-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Gerald McCoy on a defensive line that added Jason Pierre-Paul and Vinny Curry this offseason.