Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The Carolina Panthers placed star defensive tackle Kawann Short on season-ending injured reserve, the team announced Tuesday.
Short suffered a partially torn rotator cuff during the team's Week 2 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and hasn't played since. Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said in a statement that Short will undergo surgery and won't return this season.
"KK has done everything he could possibly do to try to play these past two games," Hurney said, "but we have made the decision that it is in the best long-term interest of KK and the team that he undergo surgery to fix his shoulder and focus on his rehab and get ready for next season."
In Short's absence, former first-round pick Vernon Butler, who was inactive for the first two games of the season, is expected to have a bigger role. The Panthers promoted defensive lineman Bryan Cox Jr. from the team's practice squad to fill Short's roster spot.
Short, a two-time Pro Bowl selection who was voted a team captain for the first time this year, recorded four tackles in two games in 2019. Before this season, he had missed only two games in his career, both in 2018.
Short previously signed a five-year, $80.5 million contract in 2017. He is under contact with Carolina through the 2021 season.
