Buccaneers Waive Raven Greene, Claim Offensive Lineman
Photo: Brandon Walton; Credit: Buccaneers.com
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw another opportunity to upgrade their offensive line depth and took advantage of it, claiming former Pittsburgh Steelers tackle Brandon Walton off of waivers on Tuesday night.
To create room on the 85-man roster, the Buccaneers waived safety Raven Greene in a corresponding move.
Walton entered the NFL a year ago as an undrafted free agent with the Buffalo Bills, but spent the majority of his rookie season on Pittsburgh's practice squad. He stuck with the Steelers until he was waived on August 17.
A Florida Atlantic product, Walton, 6-foot-5, 300 pounds, started 13 games at left tackle during his final college season and earned first-team All-Conference USA honors for his play.
Tampa Bay has struggled to maintain offensive line depth throughout the preseason, losing guards Sadarius Hutcherson and Donell Stanley to the injured reserve over the past week. In addition, rookie center Robert Hainsey was sidelined for nearly two weeks from an injury, while Josh Wells and Donovan Smith have missed previous practices due to personal matters. Guard John Molchon left practice Wednesday with an injury, too.
Greene signed with the Bucs in May and was in the thick of a battle for Tampa Bay's fourth safety role this offseason. However, Greene had fallen behind Javon Hagan and nickel cornerback Ross Cockrell in the competition during the early part of the preseason.
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