The Bucs moved up one spot from pick 14 to the 13 in the draft to ensure that they could pick Iowa offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs. This draft process has been different this year due to the worldwide pandemic, but the excitement of getting drafted to the NFL remains the same.

“It was a pretty special moment when your phone starts vibrating,” Wirfs said about getting the call. “You kind of just get this wave of excitement and fear and all these emotions. It’s kind of like a culmination of hard work and blood sweat and tears and everything coming together. It was a big wave of emotion, it was incredible.”

There wasn’t a possibility to have the traditional draft parties that most rookies have, and yet Wirfs still made it a special moment. Wirfs rolled out the red carpet for his mother in front of their home in Mount Vernon, Iowa, with flowers in hand so they could have that infamous walk that most players get to do.

“That was a pretty special deal.” Wirfs said. “We just tried giving her a night kind of like Las Vegas, we’re not dressed up or anything, but just rolled the red carpet out on our front lawn, but still tried to make it special for her.”

New Bucs OT Tristan Wirfs is 6’5, 322 lbs” and still did this 🤯

(tristan_wirfs74/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/GxEsXx6Ln9

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 24, 2020

Wirfs comes into a situation where he is expected to become the Bucs’ starting right tackle. And though he was the fourth selected out of the “big four” tackles in this draft, Wirfs isn’t joining a typical situation, he’s about to be playing for a team in a win-now mode and blocking for Tom Brady.

“It’s pretty crazy to think about,” Wirfs said of playing with Brady. “Tom Brady has been in the league since 2000 and I was born in 1999, so he’s been in the league for as long as I’ve pretty much been alive. It’s pretty cool to protect him.”

It took a lot of work for him to get to up to this point, and he credits his college coach Kirk Ferentz with advice that he gave him. It’s also helped him on a day-to-day basis as he tried to stay in football shape even with the coronavirus altering everything about the draft.

“He always kept telling me to keep working hard,” Wirfs said. “Never lose that mindset or mentality, that’s what I’ve been trying to do. It’s been different with this whole virus thing going around but I’ve been lucky enough to have access to a gym, so that’s been nice. It keeps me busy, but just keep working hard, that’s all you can do.”

This won’t be the first time that he will be playing in Raymond James Stadium as Wirfs was there on New Years Day in 2019 when his Hawkeyes defeated Mississippi State in the Outback Bowl 27-22.

“Raymond James is a pretty awesome stadium,” Wirfs said. “I love the ship they got, [in the North] end zone or something like that. I loved that game, I got to block Montez Sweat, he was playing at Mississippi State, that was a great game coming out with a win. I remember I was so hype up about it, it was incredible.”

Wirfs was consider an athletic offensive tackle entering this draft, and he spoke a little about where he thinks he excels best.

“I think I’m a pretty powerful guy,” Wirfs said. “I come off the line of scrimmage pretty quick. I know I can pull and get out in space well get up to the second level pretty fast.”