What Elijah Klein and Devin Culp Do for the Buccaneers

The final two picks of the Bucs’ 2024 NFL Draft could make the roster.

The Buccaneers finished off their 2024 NFL draft class on the offensive side of the ball, selecting UTEP guard Elijah Klein at 220 overall and (yet another) Washington tight end Devin Culp at 246 overall.

Klein, by the measure of several people in the know, could be a big-time steal as someone with starting potential. Culp seems like more of a move tight end who will provide competition in training camp. We can get the skinny on both:

Career Stats

Klein started a whopping 55 games for the Miners over 5 college seasons. A vast majority came at right guard (53), but he did fiddle with left tackle as well (2 games). Just a two-star recruit, Klein preserved with qualities that the Bucs always value — grit, know-how, and pure toughness.

Culp was also a long-time college player, spending six seasons with the Huskies. The 24-year-old was former teammates with Cade Otton, who’s entering his third season with the Bucs. Culp produced little as he worked with anemic offenses and then completely stacked offenses with role players much more involved than him (like third-round pick Jalen McMillan).

Culp finished with 66 total receptions for 711 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Athletic Testing

Klein has the athletic profile of a fine NFL guard. Per RAS, he’s about as middle-of-the-road as you’ll find in terms of physical tools, which is totally acceptable at this point. He’s got excellent size in terms his arms (34 1/4”) and hands (10 1/16”), but he could use some more weight to handle NFL bull rushes (currently a shade over 300).

The 3-cone of 7.32 is a nice time for him, as he’ll be asked to move a good bit in Tampa’s more zone-focused scheme. That numbers shows he’s capable, and that appears to be backed up on film.

Culp, as a former wide receiver, has a strong RAS profile as a tight end despite his poor size (6-foot-3, 231 pounds). He has excellent straight line speed to work down the seam, and the strong jumps show up on contested catch situations.

What Type of Players Are Elijah Klein and Devin Culp?

Despite only a 26-pick difference, the outlooks on these two seems notably different.

For one, Klein should get a serious chance at competing for the starting left guard spot with veterans Sua Opeta and Ben Bredeson. He’s been praised by noted offensive line experts like Bleacher Report’s Brandon Thorn, former player Brian Baldinger, and OL coach Duke Manyweather.

Thorn labels Klein as an “extremely efficient zone run-blocker who plays long with good hand placement, play strength, and posture to steer defenders away from the ball with the leg drive to finish blocks at a high level.”

Sure sounds like someone worthy of a starter competition. He needs more polish in pass protection, which isn’t shocking given UTEP ran the ball notably more than it passed it (58-42 run-pass split). That may steer him into primary backup honors to begin with, but the ceiling is clearly higher than some run-of-the-mill, bottom-roster guy.

Culp is fast and agile with a good catch radius but the lack of size, route polish, and poor blocking are really going to work against him. He screams project, which isn’t an ideal when the player is already 24 years old.

It seems unlikely he will push the established group of Otton, Ko Kieft, and Payne Durham for a roster spot, but perhaps he’ll find the special sauce in mini camps and the pre-season.

Conclusion

If analysts are to be believed, the Bucs might’ve found a serious diamond in rough with Klein, whose grit and technique in the run game should fit perfectly on a Bucs roster that needs as much competition as possible. It seems like a good bet he’ll make the initial 53-man roster.

Culp’s chance, conversely, feel very slim but he’s tailormade for the practice squad, which is totally fine as it would give him ample opportunity to improve his weak spots. You never know, he could impress out of the gate like Christian Izien and multiple other rookies did last year.