Richmond midfielder Jacob Hopper will undergo surgery on his knee on Monday which will keep the Tigers onballer out of action for a fortnight at least.

Hopper was pulled from Adem Yze's Round 2 squad on Friday ahead of their clash with Port Adelaide due to a nagging knee issue, while veteran defender Nathan Broad (calf) was also withdrawn from the side.

A best-case turnaround for Hopper will be a couple of weeks on the sidelines following his arthroscopic surgery, with Richmond set to learn the full extent of the 27-year-old's setback on Monday afternoon.

"He's going to go in tomorrow for a look inside his knee. He might be out for two weeks. they might have a bit of a cleanout," Yze said following Richmond's five-goal defeat to the Power on Sunday.

"He could have tried to push his way through it, but he is too important. We want him to be able to train and get on top of that.

"We'll get the full extent of that tomorrow afternoon, but we're thinking it'll be a couple of weeks."

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 24: Jacob Hopper of the Tigers is congratulated by team mates after kicking a goal during the round six AFL match between Melbourne Demons and Richmond Tigers at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on April 24, 2023, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

The Tigers' injury woes worsened just minutes out from the opening bounce at the MCG on Sunday, with small forward Maurice Rioli tweaking his back in the warm-up during a tackling drill.

Already without young backman Josh Gibcus (ACL), Dion Prestia (hamstring), Tylar Young (concussion) and Jack Graham (quad), the Tigers are dealing with early-season injury issues while also sitting 0-3 to start life under Yze.

The club is confident Broad will be available for this week's clash with an undefeated Sydney side on Sunday, while Young could return from a concussion sustained in Round 1 against Carlton.

"It's all happening, we're going through a little bit at the moment. A bit of adversity," Yze added.

"Guys getting sore at training, but in the end we've got to go with a no-risk attitude, irrelevant of win-loss. For guys like 'Broady', if there is any risk in playing them, we just can't, they are too important to us. We made some calls on players who were a bit sore.

"With Maurice before the game, even if he felt like he could play if you can't play at 100 per cent... we've got fresh players."

Richmond will be chasing their first win of the season when they host the Swans at the MCG on Sunday at 4:00pm (AEDT).