The Bucs' Vita Vea actually laughed after getting a tooth knocked out mid-play
Vita Vea, hockey player.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers nose tackle Vita Vea may be a 6-foot-4, 346-pound lineman. But he’s a hockey player at heart, apparently. The Lightning should give him a call after Sunday’s game against the Colts.
I mean, the guy lost a tooth and laughed it off like it was nothing.
During the first half of Tampa Bay’s Week 12 matchup with Indianapolis, Vea was going up against Colts guard Mark Glowinski. And we could see as Glowinski’s helmet caught Vea right in the mouth. Vea’s helmet was already pushed out of position — exposing his mouth below the facemask — and Vea wasn’t wearing a mouthguard. That all set up a dangerous environment for his teeth.
Vita Vea just got a tooth knocked out mid-play.
pic.twitter.com/H7ELJXsEoZ
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 28, 2021
Just … OUCH.
You could literally spot the tooth flying from Vea’s mouth in the replay. And when Vea returned to the sidelines with a bloody mouth, he pointed and laughed at the newly created gap in his smile.
We’ll have to wait and see if he fixes the tooth or goes full hockey player. Either way, he should look into a mouthguard next time.