Buccaneers Rule Jamel Dean Out; Leonard Fournette Expected to Play vs. Saints

Head coach Bruce Arians had updates to share for two of the four Tampa Bay Buccaneers who have not practiced throughout the week on Friday, ruling cornerback Jamel Dean out with an illness against the New Orleans Saints while sharing that running back Leonard Fournette (ankle) is expected to play after returning to full participation in practice.

Dean cleared the NFL concussion protocol last Saturday before taking the field against the Buffalo Bills in Week 14. However, Dean was removed from the game with an unspecified illness, which the team has been assessing to understand if he is suffering from nagging concussion symptoms.

Arians said that Dean has not re-entered concussion protocol while he recovers from his ailment.

"It's considered an illness, he's out for this game and we're still trying to figure out what it is," Arians said of Dean. "That's it for the game. There will be some game-time guys but that's it for 'out'."

As for Fournette, Arians said "he's not out," in reference to his previous comment before being pressed about the running back's availability for Sunday: "No, he'll play."

Fournette was added to the injury report this week after finishing Tampa Bay's matchup with Buffalo as the game's leading rusher. The injury resulted in Fournette missing the first two days of practice this week before his return to working out in a full capacity, wearing a helmet, on Friday.

The game-time decisions Arians references will include cornerback Richard Sherman (Achilles), safety Jordan Whitehead (calf) and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. (foot). Neither Sherman nor Winfield practiced on Wednesday or Thursday while Whitehead has been limited all week after missing Tampa Bay's last two games.

If safety depth emerges as a serious concern before kickoff, Arians said the team could elevate a safety (either Troy Warner or Chris Cooper) from the practice squad at game-time.

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