THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Antonio Bryant has a torn meniscus in his left knee that will sideline him for the remainder of training camp.

Bryant will undergo arthroscopic surgery and is expected to be ready to play in the regular-season opener against Dallas on Sept. 13.

"We're going to go ahead and work on that knee ... clean that thing out, get him ready for the season," coach Raheem Morris said after practice Monday.

Morris said Bryant hurt his knee in December, the same night he posted the second-best receiving performance in Bucs history with nine catches for 200 yards and two touchdowns in a loss at Carolina.

Bryant occasionally has had problems with the knee since. He missed three days of practice before working out with the team on Friday and Saturday. The Bucs were off Sunday, and he was back on the sideline Monday.

"He ran out there and was ready to go the other day, then it swelled up a little bit on him again," Morris said.

"It's just not worth it. Let's get him ready for Dallas. Let's sit him down for three weeks. He probably could come back the last pre-season game, but I probably ... won't play him and just wait for Dallas."

Bryant revived his career last season after being out of football in 2007, finishing with 83 catches for 1,248 yards and seven touchdowns.

Determined to hang on to the seventh-year pro, the Bucs placed the franchise tag on Bryant in February. The move assured Bryant a salary of US$9.88 million this season.