Florida OL Richard Gouraige signs deal following NFL Draft

The Buffalo Bills are looking to shore up their offensive line and to that end they’ve signed Florida‘s Richard Gouraige as an undrafted free agent, according to KPRC’s Aaron Wilson.

Gouraige has considerable playing experience in the SEC, a staple along Florida’s offensive line for the past few years. He started 42 career games in college, while appearing in 49 in five years with the Gators.

A former Under Armour All-American in high school, Gouraige picked things up pretty quickly in college.

He made five starts for Florida as a redshirt freshman in 2019, then was an every-game starter after that. He’s got experience playing both guard and tackle, as well, potentially offering some versatility at the NFL level.

Gouraige earned his keep at Florida after emerging from the high school ranks as a top 100 player. He was a four-star prospect and the No. 96 player in the country in the 2018 recruiting class, according to the On3 Industry Rankings.

In addition, Gouraige was ranked as the No. 8 offensive tackle in his class and the No. 21 overall player in the state of Florida, hailing from Tampa (Fla.) Cambridge Christian School.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Richard Gouraige

Though Gouraige spent multiple years starting for an SEC team at tackle, there are some questions about his ability to man that role in the NFL given his questionable length.

In either case, Gouraige can certainly slide inside and offer NFL teams a quality option there.

Writes NFL Draft analyst Lance Zierlein in evaluating Gouraige:

“Durable and dependable, Gouraige has logged 42 career starts splitting time between tackle and guard. While he has started at left tackle over the last two seasons, teams might be more inclined to bump him inside due to a lack of desired length.

“He’s instinctive and plays with sound technique, but he could struggle when matched with size and power across from him. Gouraige’s pass protection experience at tackle should benefit him, but athletic limitations might ultimately cap his draft value and career ceiling.”

Among the strengths highlighted for Gouraige are his ability to step and lift into quality contact, his hand placement and his ability to combo blocks into the second level without much wasted effort.

Some of the weaknesses working against Richard Gouraige going into the NFL Draft were his back side cut-offs and pulling blocks, leaning when he makes second-level blocks and average foot agility when moving in pass protection.