The Vienna Vikings of the European League of Football have announced the signing of giant Austrian defensive lineman, Thomas Schaffer.
The 6’7″, 301 pound, 25-year-old Schaffer from Vienna, spent the 2023 season with the Ottawa REDBLACKS of the Canadian Football League but was released prior to the 2024 season.
In 2022, he played four games for the Raiders Tirol of the European League of Football (ELF) recording nine tackles, four tackles for loss. He had been signed by the Vikings and was set to become an offensive lineman before heading to Ottawa.
Before the Raiders Tirol, Schaffer had signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent and attended rookie mini-camp. He was released by the Bears on June 18th.
Collegiately, Schaffer played four seasons at Stanford (2017-20) with 37 tackles, nine tackles for loss, four sacks, one pass breakup, and one forced fumble in 26 games for the Cardinal. He won the Frank Rehm Award in 2020. Schaffer became the first Austrian to play in FBS Football.