BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — The Buffalo Bills have added more depth to their offensive line, selecting OT Tommy Doyle with the 161st selection in the 2021 NFL Draft. He's the second OT drafted by the Bills this weekend.
Another addition to our offensive line.
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) May 1, 2021
Welcome to Buffalo, Tommy Doyle! #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/QbmyR45BPW
"I'm just really excited to get in there, compete, and earn the respect of my teammates," Doyle said. "I'm excited for the competition at that position. I just want to try and help the team win."
A hockey player growing up, Doyle started playing football during his later high school years. At 6'8" and 320 lbs, he was hoping to play defensive end in college, but was told to make the switch and play as an offensive lineman.
"I showed up to college as a freshman and hadn't played offensive line before," he said. "I was only 270 lbs but got bigger and stronger every year."
Doyle played in 32 games for the RedHawks over a span of four seasons [2016-2020]. One of his best seasons was during his junior year where he started all 13 games at left tackle and was named a first team All-MAC player. His first ever start at left tackle came against Iowa in August 2019 where he lined up against former Hawkeye, now Buffalo Bill, A.J. Epenesa.
"It was a super exciting day. Being able to play against such a great player like that, it was a cool opportunity."
While he's primarily played at left tackle, Doyle says he began his career playing right tackle and recently worked on being able to play on both sides of the line.
The Bills are scheduled to pick four more times on Saturday [#203, #212, #213, and #236].
