Will Clapp (born December 10, 1995) is an American football center for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footballatLouisiana State University. He has previously played in the NFL for the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Chargers.
Clapp with the Saints in 2021
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| No. 77 – Buffalo Bills | |||||
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| Position: | Center | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born: | (1995-12-10) December 10, 1995 (age 28) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||
| Weight: | 311 lb (141 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school: | Brother Martin (New Orleans, Louisiana) | ||||
| College: | LSU | ||||
| NFL draft: | 2018 / Round: 7 / Pick: 245 | ||||
| Career history | |||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||
Clapp attended Brother Martin High SchoolinNew Orleans, Louisiana. He committed to play football for the LSU Tigers in January 2010.[1]
Clapp did not play as a true freshman in 2014 and chose to redshirt. In 2015, as a redshirt freshman, Clapp started all 12 games for the Tigers. He ranked third on the team in total snaps with 776 and knockdown blocks with 88, along with not allowing a sack all season.[2] He was named to the 2015 Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman team.[3]
As a redshirt sophomore in 2016, Clapp started 11 of 12 games, missing one due to injury. He played 648 snaps, had 58 knockdown blocks and did not allow a sack for the second straight season.[2] He was named to the 2016 All-SEC football team.[4]
In 2017, Clapp started all 13 games for the Tigers.[5] He was named to the All-SEC Football Team for the second year in a row.[6] After the season, he announced he was going to forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the 2018 NFL Draft.[7]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4+1⁄2 in (1.94 m) |
311 lb (141 kg) |
31+1⁄4 in (0.79 m) |
9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) |
5.39 s | 1.81 s | 3.13 s | 4.92 s | 8.04 s | 29.0 in (0.74 m) |
8 ft 1 in (2.46 m) |
25 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine[8][9] | ||||||||||||
Clapp was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the seventh round (245th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[10] On May 10, 2018, Clapp signed his rookie contract with the Saints.[11] He made his NFL debut on December 17, 2018, against the Carolina Panthers as a substitute for Michael Ola.[12] Clapp saw action in 14 games during the 2019 season, starting three.[13]
On September 26, 2020, Clapp was waived by the Saints and re-signed to the practice squad on September 29.[14][15] Clapp spent much of the remainder of the 2020 season alternating between the active roster and the practice squad,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] playing in several games in the middle of the season before being permanently added back to the active roster,[24] though he also spent time on the reserve/COVID-19 list during the postseason.[25][26]
Clapp re-signed with the Saints on April 20, 2021.[27] After starting the regular season on injured reserve,[28] Clapp was re-activated on October 2, spending the rest of the season alternating between the practice squad and active roster as with the previous year.[13][23] Clapp started three games in 2021, playing with the likes of Jameis Winston, Trevor Siemian, and Taysom Hill after spending his first three years with Drew Brees under center.[13]
On April 26, 2022, Clapp signed with the Los Angeles Chargers.[29]
On April 6, 2023, Clapp re-signed with the Los Angeles Chargers.[30] Following a season-ending health issue from starter Corey Linsley, Clapp was named the starting center in Week 4. He suffered a knee injury in Week 15 and was placed on injured reserve on December 18.[31]
On March 22, 2024, Clapp signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills.[32] The move reunites Clapp with Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, who was an offensive assistant with New Orleans during Clapp's rookie season.[13]