The Tampa Bay Buccaneers activated safety Ifeatu Melifonwu and running back Josh Williams from the practice squad on Saturday, making both players eligible to play in Sunday's 2026 season opener against the Bengals in Cincinnati.
The weekly elevation process allows teams to activate up to two practice squad players for each game. By utilizing both options in Week One, the Buccaneers have increased their game day roster to 55 players for their Week One matchup with the Bengals. They will be able to keep 48 of those player active for the game, naming seven inactives prior to kickoff.
Each player on the practice squad can be elevated up to three times during the regular season and an unlimited amount of times in the postseason. After the game, elevated players automatically revert to the practice squad without having to pass through waivers.
Melifonwu was signed by the Buccaneers at the start of this year's training camp, after he had spent the previous season with the Miami Dolphins, appearing in 16 games with eight starts. He played in all three preseason games and started two, tallying fie tackles, one tackle for loss and a pass defensed, but was then released in the leaguewide roster cutdown for the regular season and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. When the Buccaneers made those cuts, they left the active roster with only three safeties, so Melifonwu will provide much-needed depth to that crew in Cincinnati. In five NFL seasons, the first four in Detroit, he has played in 53 games with 22 starts and has recorded 125 tackles, 5.5 sacks three interceptions and 14 passes defensed.
Williams was also waived in the cutdown to the regular season roster limit of 53 and then immediately re-signed to the practice squad. He made Tampa Bay's active roster as an undrafted rookie last season but only appeared in three games, logging four carries for 11 yards and five kickoff returns for 129 yards. On Friday, the Buccaneers listed running back Sean Tucker as doubtful on their injury report, which could have left the offense with only Bucky Irving and Kenny Gainwell in the backfield against the Bengals. The elevation of Williams gives the Buccaneers a third option at running back and also another candidate to line up deep on kickoffs.
The practice squad elevation option was introduced as part of the new collective bargaining agreement in 2020. The new rule was something of a compromise, as it did not expand the active rosters beyond 53 players but did give teams a few more options on game days. This week, the most pressing roster needs for the Buccaneers were at safety and running back.
