Bills take a chance in draft on British rugby player
English rugby player turned offensive tackle prospect Travis Clayton was ready to join his International Pathway Program classmates on the NFL draft stage in Detroit on Saturday, when suddenly his agent came running from behind to hand him a cellphone.
A frantic and joyous minute later, Clayton had the stage all to himself after being selected by the Buffalo Bills with the 221st pick in the seventh round.
“It was all a bit of a blur, but luckily I managed to get on stage in time, dragged left, right and centre,” a still breathless Clayton said.
The 23-year-old Clayton has a head start on many of his Pathway Program 2024 classmates, who took part in a 10-week training camp-type workout in Florida this winter.
Rather than being allocated to a team by the NFL or sign as an undrafted rookie, Clayton became the program's second player to be selected in the draft. He joined Canadian Giovanni Manu, who was chosen earlier in the day by the Detroit Lions with the 126th pick.
At 6-foot-7 and 303 pounds, the 23-year-old Clayton has long been into athletics, having taken up rugby and boxing, and dabbled in soccer, rowing and tennis growing up, before drawing the line on a chance to try skeleton.
“I didn't really fancy going headfirst on a train down a skip slope, so I actually declined that,” he said.
Clayton landed on the Bills radar after sending one of their scouts to take in the Pathway Program workouts. Soon after, Bills offensive line coach Aaron Kromer was studying a tape of Clayton, and forwarded it to GM Brandon Beane.
The Bills can take a patient approach in developing Clayton.
For the first time this season, each team will have a 17th roster spot on the practice squad specifically available for an international player. Teams can promote an international practice squad player to the active roster a maximum of three times throughout the season.
Clayton said he wasn't aware of the Bills interest in him until they called.