Bills HC Sean McDermott glows about traits, work ethic of Olympic gold medalist DT

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott was glowing in his initial praise of Olympic gold medalist signee Gable Steveson.

Minnesota's Gable Steveson reacts after his match at 285 pounds in the finals during the sixth session of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, Saturday, March 19, 2022, at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich. 220319 Ncaa Session 6 Wr 021 Jpg / Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen /

There are times when Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott simply cannot help himself. Having the opportunity to sign an Olympic gold medalist freestyle wrestler was one of those times.

McDermott—who has oft-spoken throughout his career about his adoration of amateur wrestling and the qualities it breeds in its competitors—hosted former U.S. Olympian Gable Steveson on a free agent visit at One Bills Drive last month. The visit, on the surface, made sense; McDermott is a massive proponent of amateur wrestling, and Steveson is one of the most dominant wrestlers of the modern era, complementing his Olympic gold medal with an astounding 85-2 collegiate record.

The only problem?

Steveson has never played football at any level.

In fact, the first time that the 24-year-old had ever laced up a pair of cleats was on his free agent visit. Despite Steveson's inexperience, Buffalo decided to take a swing on his traits, inking him to a three-year deal shortly after his visit. The 6-foot-1, 265-pound athlete will play defensive tackle for the team.

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McDermott spoke about Steveson to reporters ahead of Tuesday’s mandatory minicamp practice, walking them through the—admittedly different—process of signing a player who has never played football before. He again leaned on his passion for wrestling in his explanation while stressing that Steveson’s development is a day-by-day process.

“I think a couple things, one of which is I’m a big believer in wrestlers, and what skills you develop in wrestling and how it can transfer to being a really good football player, especially among the offensive line and defensive line position groups,” McDermott said. “Having not played football ever—not even in high school—that’s a little bit different. That’s a little bit unique, so there’s more work to be done in terms of starting from scratch, from zero, and then trying to build each day. 

“He’s worked extremely hard with our defensive line coaches and Coach [Bobby] Babich, as well. It’s about just daily improvement. Again, this is new. I tried to equate it to some of the coaches who have not wrestled and said it’s like trying to put on, in wrestling, the ankle band when you just go to the scorer's table, and you’re not even wrestling yet. They haven’t even blown the whistle. It’s a new world, a little bit, for him.”

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Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich echoed a similar sentiment with regard to Steveson at last week’s minicamp, stating that the team was starting at “ground zero” with the tackle. That said, the defender’s traits are objective; one doesn’t go undefeated throughout their final three collegiate seasons—and win an Olympic gold medal—without being an elite athlete. McDermott spoke about some of the traits he saw from Steveson at his workout, implying that his attributes are intriguing enough to attempt to mold into something special. 

“I think more than anything the quickness, the burst, the power,” McDermott said. “All that you can tell in a small workout, those are the things that you try to identify from a defensive line standpoint, in this case. We were going through it and some of it was making sense during the workout and some wasn’t, so I just tried to put things in wrestling terms, a little bit, some of the overlapping movements, if you will. Maybe that helped a little bit, maybe it didn’t. Again, he’s been working hard.”

Steveson’s road to a potential roster spot in Buffalo is incredibly steep, but it starts at minicamp. He more likely projects as an immediate practice squad candidate for the team with the potential to contribute in 2025.