Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2015 Safeties Breakdown

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Nov 1, 2014; Morgantown, WV, USA; TCU Horned Frogs safety Chris Hackett (1) forces West Virginia Mountaineers running back Wendell Smallwood (4) to fumble during the second quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

SS Chris Hackett

A UDFA out of TCU, Chris Hackett completely fell off the draft radar when he ran an awful 4.81 forty at the Combine, and his slow performance wasn’t a surprise. He’ll have an uphill battle when it comes to making the Buccaneers roster out of training camp, but he was such a standout player in college that he’s worth at least mentioning. After all, he showed off some intriguing playmaking ability in his final season with the Horned Frogs by picking off seven passes and making strong plays in run support.

Due to his lack of speed, there’s absolutely no chance of him playing free safety, especially for a Tampa 2 team like the Buccaneers. He is an instinctive, hard-working player who can clearly make plays, but his lack of speed and athletic ability will make it difficult for him to have a big impact in this league.

That said, he, again, was a brilliant player in college, and his performances on tape make him worth watching closely in camp as a possible sleeper who could outplay his awful workout numbers. You can’t put too much stock in measurables, but we’ll see if Hackett is an exception to the general rule that players who lack athleticism fail to succeed at safety. At the very least, he is a great UDFA pick-up for Tampa Bay, since some analysts saw him as a draft-able prospect.

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