Grant
Stuard.
Grant
Stuard.
Houston· 5'11"· 230 lb
"An undersized 5'11" American Athletic linebacker with elite production and special-teams tape — a Mr. Irrelevant flier where the motor and coverage traits outweighed the frame."Pre-draft read
He's an undersized WILL, playing with urgency downhill, excelling in coverage. He triggers instantly on run keys, shooting gaps with low pad level and a two-hand rip to defeat blocks, finishing with impactful wraps. His change-of-direction is a key asset, using foot quickness and hip fluidity to mirror backs on option routes and carry vertical seams underneath.
In coverage, he exhibits active eyes and short-area burst, closing throwing lanes as a hook/curl defender, though lacking length to disrupt the catch point. His primary limitation is stacking blocks; he's often pushed back by climbing guards, requiring him to win with anticipation. On special teams, he's a fast-moving player, effective as a gunner due to his stop-start quickness.
Tampa Bay's 3-4 odd-front package demands versatile, downhill linebackers who can operate in space but also attack run lanes on passing downs.
A core-four special teams ace from Year 1, with the upside to develop into a sub-package dime linebacker, particularly in schemes that emphasize gap shooting and coverage.
Man-heavy 4-3 schemes that ask their outside linebackers to consistently stack and shed blocks from climbing interior linemen, where his length is a major liability.
His high-motor, elite special teams play combined with short-area burst and coverage instincts make him a versatile asset for attacking odd-front defenses, provided his length limitations are managed by scheme.
RELENTLESS DEFENSE | Grant Stuard
Game film cut-up of Grant Stuard's Houston tape.
Grant Stuard Highlights - Los Angeles Rams | 2026 NFL Free Agency
Game film cut-up of Grant Stuard's Houston tape.
Grant Stuard College Highlights
Game film cut-up of Grant Stuard's Houston tape.
This prospect projects as a sub-package dime linebacker, primarily valuable for immediate special teams impact. Teams are acquiring a high-motor player who offsets a lack of traditional linebacker size with elite short-area quickness and a tenacious downhill playing style. His consistent contributions across all four special teams phases make him a valuable late-round asset.
He concluded his five-year collegiate career with 331 total tackles. Utilized in a hybrid dime defender role, he drew significant special teams interest from all-star game evaluators. His collegiate usage included significant snaps as a punt-team gunner and kickoff wedge-buster, underscoring his special teams prowess at a high level of competition within the American Athletic Conference.
Evaluators noted sub-33-inch arm length and struggles against climbing offensive linemen, leading to a consensus projection as a priority undrafted free agent. The trade-off was his proven special teams ability and impressive short-area quickness. He was ultimately selected as the final pick of the draft, largely due to his potential as a core-four special teams contributor with defensive upside.
- 01
Coverage-unit dominance
Multi-year gunner and wedge-buster with tape showing him beating jams, tracking the ball, and finishing punts in the fair-catch pocket, a skill that contributes to roster longevity.
- 02
Short-area burst
Elite first-step quickness and change-of-direction allows him to trigger downhill on run keys and close throwing lanes underneath, compensating for his size limitations.
- 03
Play strength inside the frame
Compact build with functional strength and violent hand strikes; he can stop runners with proper leverage when he arrives on time.
- 04
Motor and finish
A five-year producer whose tape shows consistent effort in all game situations, chasing plays to the sideline and forcing FFs as a demonstrated hustle trait.
- 05
Football character
A team captain with a reputation for extensive film study; coaches describe him as a special-teams coordinator's ideal player due to his dedication to studying opponents.
- 01
Length deficit
Sub-33-inch arms and 5'11" height hinder his ability to stack and shed climbing guards, posing a significant challenge against gap-scheme run plays.
- 02
Take-on ability
Struggles when forced to engage pulling linemen directly; he typically has to evade blocks rather than absorbing them, which limits his fit in certain defensive schemes.
- 03
Level of competition questions
Production against mid-tier offensive lines in the American Athletic Conference requires projection against NFL guards and tight ends.
- 04
Coverage vs. size
Can be out-reached by taller tight ends at the catch point, meaning his burst gets him there but his length prevents effective disruption.
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Houston | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Houston | 13 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | Houston | 12 | 97 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 2020 | Houston | 7 | 61 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | — | 44 | 190 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Career core-four gunner who carved out a decade of NFL employment on kickoff and punt units with almost no defensive snaps — the honest projection.
Undersized linebacker whose entire NFL value came from being a Pro Bowl special-teams ace across multiple franchises — the exact archetype Stuard is drafted into.
Undersized college linebacker whose measurables and take-on limitations kept him bouncing between practice squads before washing out — the floor if the special-teams tape doesn't translate.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context. Stuard entered the 2021 evaluation as a five-year Houston linebacker with 331 career tackles and a reputation as one of the most physical, high-motor players in the American Athletic Conference. He measured 5'11" and 230 pounds with sub-33" arms — a build that scared traditional linebacker rooms — but the tape showed a defender who triggered on run keys with rare short-area burst, doubled as a punt-team gunner, and captained the Cougar defense. Board consensus placed him as a priority undrafted free agent given the length concerns and level-of-competition questions; the argument for drafting him was pure special-teams equity plus a sub-package dime linebacker projection.
NFL fit — Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa used the final selection of the 2021 draft on Stuard, making him Mr. Irrelevant, but the fit was short-lived: the Buccaneers waived him at the initial 53-man cutdown in late August, and the Indianapolis Colts claimed him off waivers within 48 hours. In Indianapolis he immediately became a core special-teams contributor, logging over 300 special-teams snaps as a rookie and quickly ascending to unit captain. His trajectory since has been the platonic Mr. Irrelevant success story — a Pro Bowl nod as a special-teams player following the 2023 season, a contract extension that made him one of the league's highest-paid pure special-teamers, and a locker-room role that outstripped his draft slot.
Retrospective. As a scouting exercise, Stuard is a clean win for the archetype rather than for Tampa specifically. The Bucs identified real special-teams equity at the final pick of the draft — the definition of a rational Mr. Irrelevant selection — but couldn't find a roster spot on a Super Bowl champion. Indianapolis recognized the same value on waivers and got years of Pro Bowl-caliber core-four production for the cost of a waiver claim. The lesson: the seventh round's honest return isn't defensive starters, it's the Grant Stuards — undersized, high-motor college producers whose special-teams tape is real and whose ceilings are honest.