The Facts: The Buccaneers on Saturday activated Fournette from injured reserve, making him eligible to play in Sunday's divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams. To make room on the roster, the Bucs waived running back Le'Veon Bell.
Diehards Line:
Fournette, who suffered a hamstring strain in Week 15, began his 21-day practice window last week to return from IR. While initially there was confidence that Fournette could return for last week's wild-card game, he felt discomfort when he attempted to reach top speed and wasn't activated, HC Bruce Arians said. Fournette practiced all this week and has looked fine, according to Arians.
Fournette earned the nickname "Playoff Lenny" and later "Lombardi Lenny" last postseason, when he had a league-high 448 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns despite not being the starter during the regular season. After Fournette was placed on IR in Week 16, Bell signed with the Bucs -- admitting at the time that he thought he might be done with football and was focusing on his boxing career. Fournette's presence could help offset the potential losses of All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs and Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen, who are both game-time decisions with ankle injuries, and keep the Rams' Aaron Donald and Von Miller from teeing off against Brady.