Former Buffalo Bills lineman Will Clapp is hanging up his cleats after suffering a major injury during the 2025 season.
The 30-year-old took to social media to announce his retirement, thanking his wife for her support and saying he was excited for what the future might hold. Clapp was a seven-year NFL veteran who spent the 2024 season with the Bills, serving mostly as a reserve.
Will Clapp Says Goodbye to the NFL
Clapp announced his retirement in an Instagram post that showed pictures throughout his career. He also included a message for his wife, Lizzie.
“From the first to the last and all the ones in between,” Clapp wrote in the caption. “Thank you for being my rock! Grateful for an amazing career and excited for our next chapter!”
Clapp came into the NFL as a seventh-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2018, playing there for four seasons and appearing in 34 games with six starts. He played two seasons for the Los Angeles Chargers before joining the Bills in 2024, appearing in one game for Buffalo that season.
Clapp returned to the Saints in 2025, but suffered a season-ending Lisfranc tear in the preseason and was never able to take the field.
“I tore my lisfranc,” he said in an appearance on 104.5 ESPN Baton Rogue’s After Further Review. ”Just a really tough situation. First play in the first preseason game in [Los Angeles]. We call a little old quick pass play and the guy hits me with a little bull-to-swim, and when I went to redirect on his swim move I just felt my whole foot give out. I limped back to the huddle and I was trying to convince myself I was good to go. Played another snap and I was like, ‘I’m not right.’”
Injury Opened New Opportunity for Will Clapp
Clapp spoke about his injury during an appearance on After Further Review, saying he grew closer to the team’s coaching staff during his rehab and assumed a role as something of a player/coach.
“I do my rehab in the mornings and I’ll go to sit in meetings,” Clapp said. “I’m the only one that’s been with [head coach Kellen Moore] and [offensive line coach Brendan Nugent] from [Los Angeles]. So I’ll ask questions in the line room. Maybe a question that a younger player might not want to ask or think to ask. Just do stuff like that. I make some cutups during the week for the guys. Just stuff that I always thought would be helpful or things that I liked when I was a younger player.”
Clapp earned praise from Moore, who said he took on a leadership role with the team’s younger linemen.
“Will’s phenomenal,” Moore said during his bye week media availability. “I had a chance to be with him in [Los Angeles]. Obviously, played a ton of snaps for us there and then unfortunately had the injury in preseason this year. He’s a huge part of this. He’s an important part of our experience here with the offensive line. We have some younger guys playing. Will’s got a ton of experience in this league. He’s been an awesome asset for Brendan and the rest of the O-line coaches.”
While Clapp’s retirement may have come as a bit of a surprise — there had been speculation about the Saints bringing him back for another season — he could still have a future in football.
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