The final pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, "Mr. Irrelevant" Grant Stuard has built a nine-year career out of special teams grit and versatility at linebacker.
Grant Stuard has outlasted his draft slot by years, turning a Mr. Irrelevant tag into a durable NFL career built on special teams production. After stops in Tampa Bay, Indianapolis and Detroit, he signed with the Rams in 2026.
Path to the league
Stuard totaled 191 tackles and 16.5 tackles for loss over four seasons at Houston. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made him the final selection of the 2021 NFL Draft, No. 259 overall, earning him the Mr. Irrelevant title.
Career highlights
As a rookie, Stuard played all 17 regular-season games plus two playoff games for the Buccaneers, leading the team with 11 special teams tackles across 351 special teams snaps. He was traded to the Indianapolis Colts in 2022 and posted a career-high 40 combined tackles for the Colts in 2024.
2025 season recap
The Detroit Lions signed Stuard in March 2025, where he continued his role as a core special teams contributor with additional depth reps at linebacker. He signed with the Los Angeles Rams in March 2026.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Grant Stuard
- ESPN: Grant Stuard
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
17 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | lions | 17 | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | colts | 17 | 40 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | colts | 17 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | colts | 15 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | buccaneers | 17 | 15 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Linebacker
- Group
- defense
- College
- Houston
- Hometown
- Conroe, TX, USA
- Age
- 27
- Status
- active
