There are thousands of football players out there who have dedicated their lives to playing football that never did or never will hear their names called on Draft Day. But one newly-minted NFL draft pick might make them really start questioning their life decisions because he hasn’t even played the game before.
With the 221st pick in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills selected rugby player Travis Clayton from England via the NFL’s International Player Pathway. As many analysts have noted, Clayton has never played football before.
But as a 6-foot-7, 300-pound offensive guard designate, the Bills aren’t exactly asking Clayton to play quarterback, run routes or learn the various nuances of shooting gaps on defense. Clayton is going to be playing offensive line, where the job is a little more straightforward, albeit far from easy.
While some fans are raising their eyebrows at the idea of a player thriving without having played the game before, there is some very noteworthy precedent for it working.
Philadelphia Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata never played football before the team took him in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He had only ever seen a handful of NFL games to boot.
The NFL International Player Pathway program has seen a number of current NFL players get their first shots in the league. No program is perfect though and there are plenty of misses too.
Clayton may not have played football before, but if he’s got the right coaching, he could get brought up to speed in short order.