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Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Devin Culp.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are facing an offseason of uncertainty at tight end.
Longtime starter Cade Otton seems destined to leave in free agency. What would have been a primo target for Tampa Bay in free agency, Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts, got hit with the franchise tag.
Their 1st round pick needs to be a defensive player. Has to be a defensive player after going with offensive players in the 1st round the last 2 drafts.
That leaves the Buccaneers looking at what’s left on the roster, and what’s left is 2024 7th round pick Devin Culp, a freakishly athletic, 6-foot-4, 237-pound tight end who hasn’t really gotten a chance to play. With Otton eating up most of the minutes, Culp has been buried on the depth chart behind players like Payne Durham and Ko Kieft.
With all that in mind, maybe the Buccaneers should finally give Culp a shot at playing. It’s something that was put into stark focus with the NFL combine going on in Indianapolis, because that’s where Culp ran a 4.47-second 40-yard dash in 2024.
It was the 4th fastest 40-yard dash time in combine history since 2003 and the Buccaneers drafted Culp in the 7th round (No. 246 overall) and signed him to a 4-year, $4.1 million contract.
“A DAMN shame Devin Culp can’t see the field,” Bucs Wire’s EMT Ashlie wrote on her official X account.
Devin Culp Barely Sees Field For Buccaneers
Culp didn’t put up big numbers in 4 seasons at the University of Washington with just 66 receptions for 711 yards and 4 touchdowns. What he did earn a reputation for was making highlight-reel catches when the ball did come his way.
“(I was) forced to run back the tape to gawk at a few highlight-reel grabs,” NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein wrote in his pre-draft evaluation.
Zierlein had Culp projected as a priority free agent.
“Culp’s tape features below-average blocking combined with bad drops and unbelievably acrobatic grabs,” Zierlein wrote. ” … He has decent vertical speed but spent much of his time running routes underneath due to the receiving talent around him. Fastballs get on top of his hands and turn into drops, but he’s able to flash with circus grabs and contested catches downfield. Culp has played a decent amount of football, so teams will need to determine whether they can project enough improvement to make him a pro.”
Interpreting Cade Otton’s Cryptic Social Media Post
While Otton has a projected market value of a 3-year, $23.7 million free agent contract, that price might even be too rich for the Buccaneers for the value they would be getting back.
Otton found himself at the center of some wild speculation after a cryptic post to his official Instagram account on Monday just weeks before he’s set to become a free agent for the 1st time.
“Can’t wait to see what the rest of 2026 brings,” Otton wrote, accompanied by a slideshow of pictures of his time with the Buccaneers and his family.
Otton was a 4th round pick (No. 104 overall) out of Washington in the 2022 NFL draft and just played out his 4-year, $4.49 million rookie contract.
NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal ranked Otton as the No. 18 available free agent in his Top 101 free agent rankings.
“Welcome to Cade Otton Island, where you can run any offense you want while never giving an inch in the run game,” Rosenthal wrote. “In our growing two-tight end world, every NFL team needs an Otton.”
Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders, Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame
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