With the Buffalo Bills' final preseason game against the Carolina Panthers coming and cuts looming, former undrafted linebacker Tyrel Dodson had some advice for his fellow "eighth-round club" members.
An undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M in 2019, Dodson worked his way into becoming a core special teamer. And the 24-year-old has been sharing some wisdom with other underdogs looking to make the cut.
"You've got to maximize your opportunity," Dodson said. "Of course, you're going to be nervous, but you can never be scared because throughout practice and stuff it's going to show that you're ready. I've talked to a lot of undrafted guys and I think every undrafted guy could play somewhere. So, I'm excited to see all those guys ball out."
It took Dodson a year to find his footing in Buffalo before he truly 'maximized his opportunity' in 2020 when he made 10 appearances including two starts. And now with another full season under his belt, Dodson is looking to lead by example and help guide other undrafted players in the right direction.
"If I see a guy nervous or I see a guy making a couple of mistakes here and there I like to come up and give them words of encouragement or they get to come to me after practice," Dodson said. "Especially during special teams, a lot of undrafted guys are going to make their way through special teams."
Dodson takes a great deal of pride in being a core special teamer, and emphasized that for guys looking to work their way into the mix through this unit, you need to "maximize your role."
"You can't act like a starter if you're not a starter you have to maximize your role," Dodson said. "I think Taiwan Jones is a perfect example of that, year 13 or 12 something like that - he's old."
All jokes aside, whether they end up making their living as a special teamer or a defensive starter, many of this year's crop of eighth-rounders could do worse than taking a page out of Dodson's book and taking pride in whatever role is offered to them.
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