Now that the NFL Draft is in the rearview, it might seem as though the offseason is about to slow down for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. However, as Anakin Skywalker once said, this is where the fun begins.
The Bucs are gearing up for OTAs, the first leg of which will run May 27-30, which will give us our best look at the incoming rookie class. What it will also do is provide us with a chance to see which young star will potentially take a veteran's roster spot and we already have a leader in the clubhouse.
Wide receiver was already a stacked position group, and it got a little more crowded thanks to the draft. Tampa Bay bookended its draft by taking Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson, with the latter being the name to watch.
Egbuka is guaranteed a roster spot and will almost certainly enter the season as the team's WR3. That means Jalen McMillan will be bumped to WR4 on the depth chart, which leaves about two more spots open for competition during camp.
Early signs are pointing to Johnson securing one of those spots, which is bad news for Sterling Shepard. He was a late addition to the team's plan during the season, as the bulk of the work he saw came during the period when both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin were out.
Sterling Shepard feels like the odd-man-out thanks to Tez Johnson's arrival
With Johnson in the fold, Shepard's spot on the roster is in jeopardy. It's something Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox opined while looking at players on the chopping block for each team this offseason, and it's a talking point that will only get louder.
It's not a secret or some novel concept to peg Shepard as an odd-man-out on the Bucs roster. He's one of the least tenured members of the team and wasn't totally effective as an option last season when called upon.
The nail in his coffin is the amount of mouths the Bucs need to feed on offense. Beyond the trio of Evans, Godwin, and Egbuka, Josh Grizzard needs to find opportunities for McMillan, Cade Otton and Rachaad White as a pass-catching threat out of the backfield. Lest we forget Trey Palmer is likely to be WR5 and will need to see some action as well.
Adding Johnson to the mix edges out not only Shepard but likely means the end for Kam Johnson and Rakim Jarrett as well. Both of those guys had value as kick returners, but the combo of Palmer and Tez will probably make up for that.
We'll see what ends up happening at training camp, but it certainly seems like the end of the road for Shepard.
More Tampa Bay Buccaneers news and rumors