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With the ninth pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills selected defensive tackle Ed Oliver. The former Houston Cougars defensive lineman is a wrecking ball, wreaking havoc on opposing offenses for the entirety of his football career. He is also legitimately excited to make the trek north to Buffalo.
As if his reaction to being selected wasn’t enough of a hint (hat tip to our own commenter Popeye the Sailor Man for supplying the gif), his walk-up to receive his Bills hat showed a player ready to be part of #BillsMafia. That’s not a player who has resigned himself to where he’s been drafted. That’s the reaction of a guy who is genuinely hyped to go where he’s heading.
Oliver’s comments leading up to the draft showed a player who wanted to go to Buffalo.
“Buffalo’s a great place,” said Oliver the day before the draft. “Oh, my God. I can’t even stress about how good their facilities are, brand new everything.”
Oliver continued raving about the team, complimenting defensive line coach Bill Teerlinck, calling him “amazing.” He said that Buffalo is “just a great place to be around.”
Oliver also showed a great understanding of the team and the situation he’s entering. Knowing that he fit exactly what the team needed may have helped in creating more excitement for him, but his enthusiasm continued to show through after the team officially selected him.
“Kyle Williams retired, so just being a guy who they can kind of count on and come in and kind of push to be the starter will be some ideal situation for me,” Oliver said.
Sal Capaccio of WGR tweeted Thursday night that Oliver said he wanted to be in Buffalo “right now,” and the big defensive lineman echoed those thoughts while speaking with Mike Catalana of WHAM. When Catalana asked about why he was so excited to be with the Bills, he mentioned Buffalo’s passionate fan base as a big part of the reason.
“They look like they have a hell of a lot of fun up there,” Oliver said, adding that “if we win, they’ll have a hell of a lot more fun.”
Oliver also discussed the brilliant career of the man he is replacing in the defense, longtime defensive captain Kyle Williams. Oliver said he’d be fortunate to have a career half as good as Williams had, and he even expressed a desire for Williams to mentor him as he begins his Buffalo career.
Between the attitude, the athleticism, the value, and the need, it would appear that the Bills absolutely drafted the best possible player for their team.