Greg Olsen Underwent Surgery on Foot Injury, Reportedly Could Miss 6-8 Weeks

Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen is expected to miss around six games after suffering a broken foot that required surgery in Sunday's win over the Buffalo Bills.

Panthers head coach Ron Rivera told reporters Monday that Olsen was out of surgery and that it "went well."

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported earlier that an injured reserve designation was possible but that Olsen will return at some point during the 2017 season. Adam Schefter of ESPN passed along a report from his colleague Chris Mortensen, noting Olsen will miss six to eight weeks.

Olsen, 32, went down in the second quarter on a non-contact play. He did not return to the sideline until the fourth quarter.

"Broke my foot. Pretty straightforward. X-ray was pretty conclusive," Olsen told reporters after the game. "It's tough for something like that to just happen. Obviously it sucks, but I've been very lucky in my career to not get injured a lot. This is something that obviously will take a little bit of time, but sometimes that's just a part the game."

The veteran tight end made his 159th consecutive start Sunday. He missed two games during his rookie season with the Chicago Bears but made 16 starts in each of the last nine years.

"Ten-plus years without having to miss a game is a good run. Unfortunately, it's come to an end," Olsen said. "It's hard to say right now. We've got to regroup with the doctors in the morning, and we'll see what the plan of attack is."

Ed Dickson will likely take over as the Panthers' starting tight end in the interim. Olsen's absence could also mean more work for Devin Funchess, the third-year receiver who played tight end at Michigan.

Either way, Cam Newton's job just got a whole lot harder with his favorite underneath target on the shelf.