Bills are signing Olympic gold medal and former WWE wrestler Gable Steveson

[Jayinem]

Well that's different

Gable Steveson, an Olympic gold medalist and one of the most dominant college wrestlers in NCAA history, is jumping to the NFL to sign with the Buffalo Bills, his agent Carter Chow told ESPN.

Steveson is signing the standard rookie three-year deal, and he now will set out to join Bob Hayes as the only athlete ever to win a Super Bowl ring and an Olympic gold medal. The Bills also announced his signing Friday.

Steveson said he knows the learning curve will be steep but is excited for the opportunity.

"I have been fortunate to compete at the highest level of competition in my sport but am looking forward to the challenge of seeing how my wrestling skills may translate to football," Steveson said. "I am grateful to Coach [Sean] McDermott, [GM] Brandon Beane and the Buffalo Bills organization for giving me this opportunity."

The 6-foot-1, 275-pound Steveson is expected to play defensive line, something he hasn't done before during his athletic career. In fact, the first time Steveson ever put on a pair of cleats was at a recent workout for the Bills.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...d-medal-wrestler-gable-steveson-signing-bills

Weird signing, they trying to attract attention?

 

[zrinkill]

The Vikings did the same thing with Brock Lesnar years ago

 

[Jayinem]

The Vikings did the same thing with Brock Lesnar years ago

I remember that, didn't work he got cut I think.

 

[zrinkill]

I remember that, didn't work he got cut I think.

Yes

 

[gtb1943]

Bob Hayes I am pretty sure was the only Olympic Gold Medalist that is in the HOF. Willie Gault was pretty good for the bears. Lam Jones I think stuck for a couple of years.

 

[RonnieT24]

Bob Hayes I am pretty sure was the only Olympic Gold Medalist that is in the HOF. Willie Gault was pretty good for the bears. Lam Jones I think stuck for a couple of years.

Yeah Lam was with the Jets for a minute but never really amounted to much as a football player. Gault was good as you say, so was Ron Brown who returned kicks for the Rams and made the Pro Bowl doing it. Brown was part of the gold medal winning 4x100 relay in the '84 Olympics. He was also the only guy I ever saw just flat outrun Darrell Green. Happened on a kickoff return on a Monday night game. Brown broke free and Green was there chasing. It looked like Green had the angle but he never closed the gap and Brown took it to the house. I'm sure the highlight is on Youtube somewhere.

 

[RonnieT24]

I remember that, didn't work he got cut I think.

Lesnar at least had SOME background in football I thought.. This guy is just a total flyer.

 

[gtb1943]

Yeah Lam was with the Jets for a minute but never really amounted to much as a football player. Gault was good as you say, so was Ron Brown who returned kicks for the Rams and made the Pro Bowl doing it. Brown was part of the gold medal winning 4x100 relay in the '84 Olympics. He was also the only guy I ever saw just flat outrun Darrell Green. Happened on a kickoff return on a Monday night game. Brown broke free and Green was there chasing. It looked like Green had the angle but he never closed the gap and Brown took it to the house. I'm sure the highlight is on Youtube somewhere.

forgot all about Brown. What happened to him?

 

[gtb1943]

Just was looking up Lam Jones. Lasted longer than I thought; five years. Classic example of great athlete who was not all that as a player. All he had was his speed

 

[Techsass]

The article says he's an ideal "Practice Squad" candidate, so I'm guessing the money isn't very much. It's probably a decent "Traits" signing gamble.

 

[Havic]

The article says he's an ideal "Practice Squad" candidate, so I'm guessing the money isn't very much. It's probably a decent "Traits" signing gamble.

Seems like WWE would be more lucrative tbh.

 

[RonnieT24]

Just was looking up Lam Jones. Lasted longer than I thought; five years. Classic example of great athlete who was not all that as a player. All he had was his speed

He went to a team that had a guy almost as fast (Wesley Walker) and who was an actual receiver. Lam's very suspect hands and route running prevented him from really be a legit receiver.

 

[RonnieT24]

forgot all about Brown. What happened to him?

I don't think he had the hands and route running skills to be a true receiving threat. But he was a badass as a kick return specialist.

 

[Jayinem]

Seems like WWE would be more lucrative tbh.

He was just let go from WWE the last few weeks. He was supposed to be a big star but it never worked out he was there for several years. He never could get out of development. Probably the same will be in NFL he'll be practice squad and never make the team I'm guessing.

 

[revospeed]

The best comparison is Stephen Neal, a former HW wrestler (who beat Brock in the finals), didn’t play football but was turned into a good guard for the Pats.