The Tampa Bay Buccaneers used both of their practice squad elevation options in Week Seven, activating guard Michael Jordan and running back Owen Wright and making them eligible to play against the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football. Both players address positions that were short-handed due to injuries.
Jordan represents an option to start at right guard with Luke Haggard inactive due to the shoulder injury he suffered last week. Second-year man Elijah Klein finished that game against the San Francisco 49ers and would be another option to start on Monday night. Haggard had started the previous four games at right guard after Cody Mauch suffered a season-ending injury in Week Two. Jordan started the first two games of the season for the Buccaneers at left guard when the team shuffled multiple positions in reaction to the absence of starting left tackle Tristan Wirfs.
Wright gives the Buccaneers a third active running back with both Bucky Irving (foot/shoulder) and Josh Williams (concussion) sidelined by injuries for Monday night's game. The first-year player joins Rachaad White and Sean Tucker as options in the backfield against the Lions.
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 Seven, the Buccaneers have increased their game day roster to 55 players for their matchup with the Lions. They will be able to keep 48 of those player active for the game, naming seven inactives prior to kickoff. For games played on Monday, teams are allowed to make roster transactions, including practice squad elevations, on the afternoon of the contest, with the deadline being 4:00 p.m. ET.
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 Jordan's third and final elevation of 2025 and Wright's second.
Jordan was originally a fourth-round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2019. He has played for the Bengals, Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots, appearing in a total of 69 games with 42 starts. Tampa Bay signed the veteran blocker on July 25, just as their 2025 training camp was kicking into gear.
Wright originally signed with the Buccaneers on July 31, a week into the team's training camp. He was waived during the final roster cuts in late August but then re-signed this past Wednesday. Wright was Tampa Bay's leading rusher during the preseason, playing in all three games and logging 25 carries for 100 yards. He also caught four passes for 12 yards and returned one kickoff for 25 yards.
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.
