The Buccaneers have waived 26-year old DT Frank Okam.  Okam played in 6 games for the Bucs this year and he had 10 tackles.  Okam played in 9 games in his two years with the Buccaneers and he had 22 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 fumble recovery.  The Buccaneers like the players they have recently signed better than Okam, so they won’t miss him too much if at all the rest of the season.

The Buccaneers have placed 23-year old DE George Johnson on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to a knee injury.  Johnson played in 4 games for the Bucs this year and he had 2 tackles.  This injury will hurt the depth along the defensive line.  The Bucs quickly re-signed DT John McCargo to help out on the D-Line going forward.

The Buccaneers have claimed 30-year old DT Albert Haynesworth off waivers from the Patriots.  Haynesworth played in 6 games for the Patriots this year and he had 3 tackles.  He has now played in 116 games in his first 10 years in the NFL and he has 327 tackles, 30.5 sacks, 49 tackles for a loss, 6 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 24 passes defensed.  This is a gamble for the Bucs as Haynesworth doesn’t seem to play hard all of the time anymore.  But, if Raheem Morris and the coaching staff can prod Haynesworth and get him to play hard…..this will be a great move for the Buccaneers!

The Buccaneers will be without 23-year old DT Gerald McCoy for the rest of the season due to torn biceps.  He played in six games for the Bucs this year and he had 11 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 sack.  McCoy has now played in 19 games in his first two years with the Buccaneers and he has 39 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 4 passes defensed.  McCoy has been a huge disappointment for the Buccaneers since he was drafted in the first round in the 2010 NFL Draft.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have waived 23-year old long-snapper Christian Yount.  Yount played in 7 games for the Bucs this year.  29-year old Andrew Economos will replace Yount.  Economos played in all 16 games for the Buccaneers last year.  He has played in 67 games (0 starts) in his first five years with the Bucs.  I have a feeling that Ecomomos is going to be a huge improvement over Yount the rest of the season.

The Buccaneers have lost 31-year old RB Earnest Graham for the rest of the season as he tore his Achilles tendon yesterday.  Graham played in 7 games for the Bucs this year and he carried the ball 37 times for 206 yards (5.6 ypc).  He also caught 26 passes for 163 yards (6.3 avg) in 2011.  If LeGarrette Blount isn’t ready to return after the bye week, 27-year old Kregg Lumpkin will likely be the featured back in the Bucs’ offense.  Lumpkin has played in 7 games for the Buccaneers so far this year and he has 12 carries for 35 yards (2.9 avg).  He has also caught 12 passes for 79 yards (6.6 avg) so far this year.  The Bucs are probably praying for Blount to be ready to go against the Saints after the bye week.

The Buccaneers have waived 22-year old rookie RB Allen Bradford.  Bradford played in 1 game for the Bucs and he carried the ball 5 times for 13 yards (2.6 ypc).  Bradford was a 6th round pick out of USC last April.  The Bucs needed Bradford’s roster spot to activate safety Tanard Jackson.  If Bradford clears waivers, the Bucs might sign him to the practice squad.

UPDATE:  (10/15/2011) – The Buccaneers have lost Allen Bradford on waivers to the Seahawks.

The NFL has reinstated 26-year old safety Tanard Jackson.  He had multiple violations of the NFL’s substance abuse policy and he has been suspended since Week #3 of the 2010 season.  He is bound to be rusty, but the Buccaneers have to be ecstatic to get him back.  Jackson played in 2 games for the Bucs last year and he had 8 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss.  He has now played in 46 games in his first four years with the Bucs and he has 204 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 6 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 24 passes defensed and 8 interceptions (two returned for TDs).  The Buccaneers have a huge need at safety, so they hope that Jackson can get back up to speed really soon.

The Buccaneers will probably be without 24-year old RB LeGarrette Blount this weekend against the Saints due to a knee injury.  Blount has played in all five games for the Bucs so far this year and he has carried the ball 77 times for 428 yards (4.3 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also has caught 4 passes for 58 yards  (14.5 avg).  If Blount can’t go (which is very likely), 31-year old Earnest Graham will get the start.  Graham has played in all five games for the Bucs so far this year and he has carried the ball 18 times for 84 yards (4.7 ypc).  He has also caught 23 passes for 143 yards (6.2 avg) so far this year.  Look for the Bucs to throw the ball more than usual if LeGarrette Blount missed this weekend’s home game against  the Saints.

24-year old RB LeGarrette Blount had a solid rookie year for the Bucs last year.  He played in 13 games for the Bucs last year and he carried the ball 201 times for 1,007 yards (5.0 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  Blount also caught 5 passes for 14 yards (2.8 avg) last year.  Blount is not much of a receiver, so the Bucs replaced Blount for a huge part of the game as they were playing from behind.  Blount only carried the ball 5 times for 15 yards (3.0 ypc) against the Lions last Sunday.  Earnest Graham only carried the ball 6 times for 13 yards (2.2 ypc) but he caught 8 passes for 58 yards (7.3 avg) against the Lions.  Blount needs to either improve as a receiver out of the backfield in practice, or he needs to keep his trap shut.