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Florida defensive lineman Gervon Dexter Sr. performs a drill during his Pro Day on March 30 in Gainesville. (JOHN RAOUX/Associated Press)
Upon learning he was being drafted by the Buffalo Bills, Florida guard O’Cyrus Torrence immediately grew excited in knowing he was being brought in to protect Josh Allen.
“The first thing that came to my mind was blocking for Josh Allen,” Torrence said Friday night shortly after being selected in the second round of the NFL draft. “And what offensive linemen don’t want to do that?”
A day after opening the draft providing Allen another pass-catching threat in Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid, the Bills followed up by getting the scrambling quarterback some hefty protection with their 59th selection.
Torrence is listed at 6-foot-5 and 330 pounds and noted for never giving up a sack during his four-year college career. He spent his first three seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette before transferring to Florida for his senior year, when Torrence earned first-team All-America and All-SEC honors in 11 starts at right guard.
From Greensburg, Louisiana, Torrence made the conscious decision to switch schools to prove to himself and others he’s capable in facing a higher caliber of competition.
“Just being able to go in the SEC and dominate and be able to be as good of a player as I was kind of proved and showed that my ceiling is higher than I originally thought,” the 23-year-old said. “And I’ve got a lot more to work on of course.”
The Bills showed plenty of interest in Torrence — who has experience playing center and tackle — by meeting with him at the combine at Indianapolis and also bringing him to Buffalo for a pre-draft visit.
Torrence has the potential to fill an immediate need after the Bills did not re-sign Rodger Saffold this offseason. Saffold started 16 games at left guard under a one-year contract last year. Starting right guard Ryan Bates returns, and Buffalo signed guard Connor McGovern in free agency last month.
Torrence wasn’t the only Gator to go off the board on Friday. The Chicago Bears addressed their shaky defense earlier in the second round by taking Florida tackle Gervon Dexter with the No. 53 pick.
They addressed a glaring need and added size on the defensive line by taking the 6-foot-6, 310-pound Dexter. He started all 13 games in his third season with Florida last year and had 55 tackles and two sacks.
One knock on Dexter is he is slow off the ball. But he has shown he is a quick study.
Dexter didn’t play football until his junior year at Lake Wales High School in Florida. His focus was on basketball and he played on the same traveling team as 2022 NBA Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes.
“On the basketball court, I was very aggressive so I was starting to foul out of a lot of games,” Dexter said. “My physical appearance just didn’t kind of meet the requirements for a standard or power forward in the game of basketball. I gave football a try and it just came natural to me and I’ve been going since.”