The Tampa Bay Buccaneers filled the final two spots on their practice squad Thursday morning, re-signing running back Patrick Laird and defensive lineman Patrick O'Connor.
The Buccaneers had announced 14 signings to the first iteration of their 2023 practice squad on Wednesday. Like O'Connor and Laird, all of those 14 players had been with the team prior to Tuesday's league-wide roster cuts.
O'Connor has been with the Buccaneers since the midpoint of his 2017 rookie season. Originally a seventh-round draft pick by the Detroit Lions that year, he was first signed to the practice squad before getting a promotion to the active roster and seeing action in three games. After one more season on the practice squad, O'Connor spent most of the next four seasons on the active roster and emerged as one of the Bucs' core special teams players. He has played in a total of 57 games, recording 20 tackles, 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits on defense.
Laird spent last season on Tampa Bay's practice squad after three years with the Miami Dolphins. Originally an undrafted free agent, he made the active roster as a rookie and appeared in 37 games with four starts from 2019-21. Laird recorded 76 carries for 244 yards and a touchdown and caught 36 passes for another 289 yards in that span.
