Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA champion wrestler Gable Steveson moves to the playing field. Steveson has signed with the Buffalo Bills and will look to make the team as a defensive tackle, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The Bills confirmed the signing and also noted that punter Matt Haack was released to create a roster spot. Steveson, 23, agreed to a standard three-year rookie contract, his agent told Schefter. According to reports, the Miami Dolphins were among the NFL teams also interested in Steveson.
Most recently, Steveson attempted to tackle WWE as a professional wrestler, signing with the company in 2021. He had a brief stint with NXT but was released by WWE in May. Buffalo showed interest in Steveson following his WWE release and paid him a visit two weeks ago, Syracuse.com reported.
Despite his success as an athlete in high school and college, Steveson has never played football before. ESPN reports that the first time he put on a pair of cleats was when he was coaching for the Bills.
“I have been fortunate to compete at the highest level of competition in my sport, but I look forward to the challenge of seeing how my wrestling skills can translate to football,” Steveson told ESPN. “I am grateful to the coach [Sean] McDermott, [general manager] Brandon Beane and the Buffalo Bills organization for giving me this opportunity.”
McDermott was a star wrestler in high school, winning two national prep titles with a 61-0 record.
As a colleague, Steveson competed at 285 pounds, but according to NFL.com, he is currently listed at 265 pounds. That puts him at roughly the same weight as most edge rushers, not interior defensive linemen, although recently retired Aaron Donald stood at 6-foot-4 during his NFL career.
Steveson won a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as a super heavyweight (125 kg). At 21 years old, he was the youngest to win Olympic gold at that level. At the University of Minnesota, Steveson won three Big Ten championships from 2020-2022 and NCAA Division I championships in folk-style wrestling in 2021 and 2022. He is also a two-time winner of the Dan Hodge Trophy, given to the nation’s top college wrestler .
If Steveson makes the Bills roster – or any other NFL team – and wins a Super Bowl, he will join Bob Hayes as the only athletes to earn that honor and an Olympic gold medal.
