Texas Football: Grading landing spots for Longhorn undrafted free agents

Perhaps the more intriguing of the two former Longhorns to be signed as undrafted free agents following the end of the 2020 NFL Draft is Shackelford. This 6-foot-4 and 305 pound center was considered to be one of the five or 10 best NFL prospects at his position that were draft eligible at the outset of the 2019 college football season.

Shackelford will be off to join the offensive line now protecting legendary signal caller Tom Brady.

A team that needed a bit more help along the offensive line in the 2020 NFL Draft did address that need to a certain degree. The Buccaneers used their first round draft pick (13th overall) to select the former Iowa Hawkeyes offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs, which was a good get for them. Wirfs was a top-15 caliber talent in this draft class.

Shackelford will be joining a very potent offense that had some huge names added to the roster so far this offseason. Brady and future Hall-of-Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski are joining this Bucs offense to try and get them over the hump that they just couldn’t get through when former Florida State Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston was leading the way here.

Competition for snaps and a roster spot in Tampa Bay will come against the likes of center Anthony Fabiano and offensive guard Zack Bailey. Former Rice Owls offensive guard Nick Leverett is the only other undrafted free agent signing up to this point that the Buccaneers have competing with Shackelford for a roster spot.

But since the Buccaneers have two solid centers in the mix right now and took other steps to address their offensive line needs in this draft class, there could be mixed results for Shack in Tampa.

Grade: B