From practice to perhaps ...?

By STEPHEN F. HOLDER
Published December 11, 2005

It's Sunday, and Bucs receiver Paris Warren is ready for kickoff. He will live and die with each snap. Soon, he will either celebrate a victory or be dismayed after a defeat.

And he will do it all from the confines of his living room.

That is where Warren and the other members of the practice squad spend their Sundays when the team takes a road trip. Not being able to travel is one of the bigger drawbacks to being on the practice squad, but Warren and others feel no less a part of the wins and losses - even from hundreds of miles away.

They are a bigger part of the Bucs than most people think, even though the words "practice squad" tend to have a negative connotation. Players often are met by confused looks from strangers when they learn of their vague status with the team. But to those who live it, the importance of the practice squad is unmistakably clear.

"When you're on the practice squad, you can't hang your head," said Warren, 23, a seventh-round draft pick out of Utah. "There were some roster moves they had to make most likely. And you could have still been sitting at home. The team had faith in me and they brought me back on the practice squad. I just keep working because you never know what could happen."

That's what keeps these guys going.

In the NFL, the 53-man roster is a perpetual work in progress. Injuries happen. Players go through slumps. Teams' needs constantly change. If and when a situation calls for a roster move, there's always a good chance it will involve a member of the practice squad being promoted to the active roster.

It's about as close as you can get to an NFL roster without being on one. You know, sort of like NFL Lite.

"If you're like me, you just love being out there and love being around the team, so you'll do anything just to help the team win," said receiver Larry Brackins, 23, a fifth-round pick from Pearl River (Miss.) Community College. "I still feel like a part of the team. I feel like if they want me on the practice squad, then that's what I'll do."

That doesn't make it easy. Try explaining to your friends and family that you play for the Bucs, but they just shouldn't expect to see you put on a uniform.

Running back Earnest Graham, an undrafted free agent, had two stints on the practice squad before making the team this season.

"I definitely had those conversations," the 25-year-old former Florida Gator said. "When you tell people, "I'm on the practice squad,' they kind of look at you like, "Oh, too bad.' But you know you accomplished something just to be here. If you're not out here and a part of this, you really can't appreciate it. I guess I can't blame them. I think sometimes guys on the practice squad don't even understand what a big deal it is."

Running back Derek Watson, 24, who was promoted to the active roster a week ago, dealt with that problem for the first 11 weeks of the season.

"I'm sitting at my house watching the games and I'm calling my friends and family asking them, "Man, did you see that play?' " Watson, an undrafted free agent, said. "They'd say, "Nah, I'm not watching because you're not playing.' To me, you're on the team. Being on the practice squad, people kind of overlook you."

Fortunately, the right people pay attention.

"We've taken guys like him off our practice squad and started them," coach Jon Gruden said. "I think it's a great thing the NFL does to extend your team with guys who cannot only practice, but have a potential future on your football team."

Watson has made the jump. So has 27-year-old safety Kalvin Pearson, a free agent out of Grambling. And safety Hamza Abdullah, a seventh-round pick out of Washington State, was cherry-picked by the Broncos off the Bucs practice squad in November and remains on Denver's active roster.

Those currently on the practice squad fulfill their duties hoping for similar results. Last week, they were charged with simulating the Carolina Panthers in practice. Warren played receiver Ricky Proehl. Brackins played receiver Steve Smith. Their primary job was to test the first-team defense. It's a tough assignment. It's also a priceless opportunity.

"You go out and make plays against them and that's a statement," Brackins said.

That's what the practice squad affords you: the elusive chance to make that statement. And for those who don't value it, there are always others who will.

"Trust me," Gruden said. "There's a million guys banging on our door every day who want the chance."

[Last modified December 11, 2005, 02:15:36]