Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Vita Vea will likely miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken leg during Thursday's loss to the Chicago Bears, head coach Bruce Arians announced Friday.

The original report stated Vea sustained a broken ankle.

Widely recognized as one of the league's best nose tackles, Vea is a major reason for the Bucs' second-ranked run defense (55.8 yards per game) and fifth-ranked total defense through five games.

The 6-foot-4, 347-pounder racked up 10 tackles and two sacks in 2020.

"It's a big loss," Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said postgame, according to Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. "You don't have another Vita, that's for sure. But other guys who step in and step up and take it."

Defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches will likely start in place of Vea.