Buccaneers Open Practice Window for Richard Sherman, Justin Watson
Photo credit: Buccaneers.com
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have opened the 21-day practice windows for cornerback Richard Sherman, who is currently on the injured reserve, and wide receiver Justin Watson, who is on the Physically Unable to Perform list. The two are now eligible to begin practicing immediately and can be activated from their respective reserve lists at any time in the next 21 days.
Sherman landed on the injured reserve after Week 10's loss to Washington, as he suffered a calf injury in pregame warmups before the matchup. Sherman was preparing to return from a hamstring injury suffered in Week 6 against the Philadelphia Eagles at that time.
Watson, meanwhile, landed on the PUP list in July before the season began after undergoing a procedure on his knee.
Head coach Bruce Arians spoke about both Sherman and Watson's imminent return to practice earlier this week, indicating that a position change could be in store for the former given the Buccaneers' depth issues at safety currently.
"He's going to start learning safety also. That's the beauty of having ‘Sherm’ here – he’s a veteran player who can play a lot of positions," Arians said of Sherman. "We'll look at that this week and see if that's a fit for us."
As for Watson, Arians shared his doubts that Watson would be activated from the PUP list given the Buccaneers' crowded room of receivers, but there would be a chance if injuries began to pile up at the position. The room of receivers is healthy at the moment, but is without Antonio Brown while he serves the remaining two games of his three-game suspension.
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