Bucs' Jason Pierre-Paul to Play vs. Titans, OLB Fractured Neck in May Car Crash

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will reportedly activate defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul from the non-football injury list and play him Sunday against the Tennessee Titans, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. 

Pierre-Paul was one of the few bright spots on an otherwise abject Buccaneers defense in 2018. He finished with 58 combined tackles, 16 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks.

The 30-year-old was involved in a car accident in May and suffered a fractured vertebra. He declined to undergo neck surgery immediately after the crash, leaving the door open for him to play at some point in the 2019 season.

The Bucs placed Pierre-Paul on the reserve/non-football injury list in August, which meant he'd miss at least the first six weeks.

Tampa Bay retooled on defense in the offseason, signing Shaquil Barrett and Deone Bucannon and tabbing Ndamukong Suh to replace the outgoing Gerald McCoy. The team also used its first five draft picks on defensive players, a group headlined by LSU linebacker Devin White.

The unit ranks 16th in defensive efficiency, per Football Outsiders.

Barrett is tied for the NFL lead with nine sacks this season, and adding JPP's 71 career sacks to the mix could go a long way toward opening additional space for Barrett and making life miserable for opposing offensive tackles.