The Tampa Bay Buccaneers activated linebacker Vi Jones and wide receiver Marquez Callaway from the practice squad on Saturday, making both eligible to play in the Week 10 contest against the San Francisco 49ers 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. The elevations of Jones and Callaway will give them 55 available men to play against the 49ers at Raymond James Stadium. 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 second elevation for both Jones and Callaway, each of whom were also brought up last week to play against the Chiefs in Kansas City on Monday night.
Both players made their Buccaneer debuts in Kansas City, with Callaway playing three snaps on offense and Jones playing three snaps on defense. Jones also logged 14 plays on special teams.
Originally an undrafted free agent with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022, Jones got into three regular season games as a rookie, playing solely on special teams. He first joined the Buccaneers as a practice squad signee last September, and he went to training camp in Tampa this summer before landing back on the practice squad. The Bucs will have five off-ball linebackers available on Sunday, with Jones joining starters Lavonte David and K.J. Britt and reserves J.J. Russell and Antonio Grier.
Callaway was also originally an undrafted free agent, signing with New Orleans in 2020. He went on to see extensive action over the next four seasons for the Saints, playing in 45 games with 17 starts and recording 83 receptions for 1,069 yards and seven touchdowns. The Buccaneers have three receivers on their injury report for Sunday's game, with Mike Evans set to miss his third straight game with a hamstring injury and rookie Jalen McMillan considered questionable with a hamstring ailment that kept him out of last Monday's contest. Sterling Shepard is also on the report due to hamstring and hip injuries but does not have a game status designation.
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, particularly in regard to dealing with injuries.
