The Buffalo Bills made one of the most interesting decisions of the NFL Draft over the weekend when they decided to take a player who has NEVER played football before.
The decision came in the seventh round when the Bills decided to take offensive tackle Travis Clayton with the 221st overall pick. Although Clayton, who's from England, has never played competitive football at any level, he is familiar with the sport because he participated in the NFL's International Player Pathway program, which is basically an annual 10-week boot camp for international players that's held during the winter.
Clayton is a former rugby player who has impressive size -- he stands at 6-foot-7 and weighs just over 300 pounds -- so the Bills are clearly hoping that they'll be able to mold him into a player who can contribute to the team at some point down the road.
CBS Sports NFL Draft guru Chris Trapasso gave the pick a C+.
"At 6-foot-7 and 300 pounds with 35-inch arms and a sub 5.00 40-yard dash, this is a ridiculous athlete who is new to football from London," Trapasso wrote.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane liked the raw talent he saw in Clayton, which is one reason why Buffalo decided to select him.
"You know, I've never seen him really, truly play football," Beane said, via the AP. "But I know he was a rugby player, boxing and by all accounts a great young man. And his measurables are wowing off the page."
Clayton thinks that his time playing rugby will help him make the transition to the NFL.
"With rugby also being a team sport, I believe that helps tremendously, my team knowledge and what it takes to communicate properly here and in the future, hopefully in the NFL," Clayton said, via the Bills' official website. "More importantly playing the wing in rugby helps with the physicality side and with agility and things like that will help."
Clayton attended an NFL academy in 2019 and that appears to be when he decided that he might enjoy being an offensive lineman in the NFL.
"I love the physical side of things. Being on the offensive line, being able to take your anger out on people legally, it's great," Clayton said. "I can just use my strength to my abilities."
The Bills will be hoping that Clayton can be the next Jordan Mailata. Like Clayton, the Eagles offensive lineman had never played football before being drafted in the seventh round in 2018, and six years later, he's now the anchor of Philadelphia's line as the starting left tackle (Mailata has started 57 games over four seasons).
Clayton will have a legitimate chance to crack the roster in Buffalo and that's because the NFL has special rules in place for players who come from the league's International Pathway program. Each team gets an extra practice squad spot that's only allowed to be used on an international player, so even if Clayton isn't quite ready for the NFL in his rookie year, the Bills can keep him around without it impacting their regular roster.
