Buccaneers place Chris Conte on injured reserve

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed safety Chris Conte on injured reserve after he missed today's practice, and will be replacing him by promoting linebacker Darius Eubanks from the practice squad according to Greg Auman. This will allow the Bucs to keep Eubanks on the roster for the offseason with no competition from other teams trying to sign him.

Conte has had a solid season, recording two interceptions, six passes defensed and two forced fumbles in 13 starts at free safety. Conte wasn't spectacular, but he wasn't a liability either, generally doing his job in the defense as called. That helped the Bucs lead the league in preventing 25+-yard passes, though obviously there were defensive deficiencies elsewhere.

Conte's contract runs out this offseason and it's not clear whether the Bucs want to bring him back. At minimum he can be a reliable backup, but so can Major Wright, Bradley McDougald and perhaps even Keith Tandy. The team is also likely to look to upgrade the defensive secondary and will try to find an impact safety, which may mean saying goodbye to Conte.