On Saturday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers activated rookie quarterback Connor Bazelak and second-year outside linebacker Mohamed Kamara from the practice squad, making them eligible to play against the New Orleans Saints in the Caesars Superdome on Sunday.
Both of the quarterbacks on the Buccaneers' active roster were on the injury report this week, starter Baker Mayfield due to a knee ailment and backup Teddy Bridgewater due to an issue with his teeth. Neither received a game-status designation of questionable or doubtful on Friday's report, but Mayfield was limited in the final practice of the week. Now that he'll be on the active roster on game day, Bazelak could either be kept among the active players for the contest or listed as the team's "inactive third quarterback." An inactive third quarterback can enter the game if the other active quarterbacks are both unavailable due to injury or ejection.
Kamara boosts the Buccaneers' edge rush depth in the wake of knee and ankle injuries sustained by starting outside linebacker Haason Reddick on Monday night in Detroit. Reddick was ruled out for the game in New Orleans on Friday's injury report. Mohamed joins Yaya Diaby, Anthony Nelson, Chris Braswell and Markees Watts as available outside linebackers on Sunday.
The NFL introduced the practice squad elevation option in 2020, allowing teams to activate up to two practice squad players for each game. By utilizing two such options in Week Eight, the Buccaneers have increased their game day roster to 55 players for their matchup with the Saints. 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. This is the first elevation of the season for both Bazelak and Mohamed.
Bazelak joined the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent this past May. He finished his collegiate career with two seasons at Bowling Green after previous stops at Missouri and Indiana, and he earned starting assignments at all three schools. As a third-team All-MAC selection in 2024, he had his most productive season, completing 66.9% of his passes and throwing for 3,044 yards in 13 games, with an 18-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Bazelak appeared in all three of the Bucs' preseason games, completing 32 of 466 passes for 261 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions and a passer rating of 90.9
Mohamed was a fourth-round draft pick by the Miami Dolphins in 2024. He got into five games for Miami as a rookie, recording one tackle and one quarterback hit. He was waived during the final roster cuts at the end of August and quickly signed by the Buccaneers to their practice squad. Mohamed played his college ball at Colorado State.
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.
