33 Jeremy McNichols RB

McNichols (shoulder) signed his rookie contract on Tuesday, Scott Smith of the team's official site reports.

McNichols unexpectedly slipped to the fifth round after having surgery on his labrum following the Combine, but he was initially rated as worthy of a first-or-second-day pick. The prolific Boise State alum boasts a well-rounded skill set and reminds many observers of new teammate Doug Martin, who he'll compete for playing time with this season. In addition to compiling 3,205 rushing yards and 44 touchdowns in three college seasons, McNichols also hauled in 103 catches and another 11 touchdowns through the air while serving as an above-average blocker.

McNichols (shoulder), a 2017 fifth-round pick who's already drawing plenty of comparisons to current Bucs running back Doug Martin, is viewed as a three-down back by general manager Jason Licht, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports. "On film, he's got excellent hands, just rare hands," Licht said. "He's a very well-rounded guy, runs well -- he's got three-down value."

The rookie's stature and body type are certainly reminiscent of Martin, who also happens to be a fellow Boise State alumnus, and the similarities don't end there. McNichols racked up 3,205 yards and 44 touchdowns in three college seasons, coming impressively close to Martin's four-year totals (3,431 yards, 43 touchdowns). Where he was even more accomplished than his predecessor was through the air, with McNichols, a former receiver, compiling 103 catches for 1,089 yards and 11 touchdowns at Boise State. In addition to his standout offensive numbers, the Bucs were also impacted by the 21-year-old's stellar backfield blocking, with Licht praising him as "one of the best pass protectors in the draft" at running back. The torn labrum McNichols underwent surgery for following the Combine has him sidelined for this weekend's rookie mini-camp, but he's expecting to be ready for the start of training camp in late July.

McNichols (shoulder) is already highly familiar with Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter's offense, having played under the same system at Boise State, Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times reports. "Jeremy's going to walk in there and be football intelligent. He's going to know protections and speak the language," said Boise State coach Bryan Harsin, who played quarterback for Koetter at Boise State. "He'll understand what they're teaching, and that's a carryover from my time with Dirk ..."

While his pre-training camp preparation will be compromised to an extent by his recovery from post-Combine labrum surgery, the fifth-round pick will at least have a solid knowledge base to go off of with respect to the offense he'll be playing in. In addition to playing quarterback under Koetter when the latter helmed the Broncos' program, Harsin also served as the team's offensive coordinator from 2006-10 before returning as head coach in 2014. His play-calling tenure included four seasons coaching Bucs RB Doug Martin, a Boise State alumnus who he compares McNichols favorably to in terms of power and elusiveness. McNichols can largely erase the stigma of his draft freefall by mirroring the path of former college teammate Jay Ajayi, who rushed for 1,272 yards and eight touchdowns with the Dolphins in a breakout 2016 campaign after dropping to the fifth round in 2015 . "I feel like he was as ready as Jay when he came out," Harsin said. "Jay went through some of that, too. He dropped a little bit from what people expected, and look where he's at now."

McNichols underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder following the combine, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

McNichols strangely took a nosedive during this year's NFL Draft, falling to the Buccaneers as the 162nd overall pick, but head coach Dirk Koetter revealed the running back's recent health concern during a media session on Saturday evening. Koetter believes McNichols will be healthy by the time training camp rolls around, almost certainly hindering his participation during the rest of the offseason program. Although adept as both a runner and pass catcher, McNichols may be left behind in the competition for top running back during the remaining three games of Doug Martin's suspension to begin the upcoming season. On the other hand, an impressive training camp and preseason slate could help McNichols jump Jacquizz Rodgers and Charles Sims (pectoral) in the RB pecking order.

The Buccaneers selected McNichols in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft, 162nd overall.

McNichols was an extremely productive player at Boise State and may be the second-best pass catcher at the position behind Christian McCaffrey, yet he falls all the way to the mid fifth round. The reason why isn't obvious -- McNichols (5-foot-9, 214 pounds) was also one of the top performers at the Combine, logging a 4.49-second 40, 121-inch broad jump, and 6.93-second three-cone. For a player who totaled 3,980 yards and 53 touchdowns from scrimmage in 25 games, this is a baffling draft tumble. McNichols is pretty much off the redraft radar, but his prospect profile still says he's worth buying in dynasty.