TAMPA — With their season on the line, the Buccaneers are opening the door for a veteran who’s been climbing the walls for three months.
Rookie Kwon Alexander’s four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs has created a vacancy at middle linebacker, and Bruce Carter intends to fill that hole dynamically in Sunday’s home matchup against New Orleans.
If the Bucs (6-6) win out, they will be well positioned to earn their first postseason berth since 2007.
“Everybody knows what we’ve got at stake,’’ Carter said Friday, when he took first-team reps at middle linebacker during practice.