Austin Blythe (born June 16, 1992) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

who played seven seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, and was drafted by the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

in the seventh round of the

2016 NFL Draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...

. He has also played for the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

, and the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

College career

Blythe was a four-year starter at Iowa, appearing in 52 games. As a senior, he aided the Hawkeyes to a 12–0 start, earning a spot in the Big Ten Championship and the

2016 Rose Bowl The 2016 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game that was played on January 1, 2016 at the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, California. This 102nd Rose Bowl Game matched the Big Ten Conference West Division champion Iowa Hawkeyes against the Pa ...

. He was a finalist for the

Rimington Award The Dave Rimington Trophy is awarded to the player considered to be the best American football Center (American football), center in college football. Dave Rimington was a center who played at the Nebraska Cornhuskers football, University of Nebr ...

, which is given annually to the nation's top center, in his senior season.

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

Blythe was drafted in the seventh round (248th overall) of the

2016 NFL draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...

by the

. He signed his rookie contract with the Colts on May 5, 2016. As a rookie in 2016, he served as a backup center behind fellow rookie Ryan Kelly. In the 2016 season, Blythe played in eight games with one start. On May 15, 2017, Blythe was waived by the Colts.

Los Angeles Rams

On May 16, 2017, Blythe was claimed off waivers by the

. He played in all 16 games in 2017 and earned his first start of the season in Week 17 at left guard. Blythe entered the 2018 season as the starting right guard after incumbent starter

Jamon Brown Jamon Brown (born March 15, 1993) is an American football guard who is a free agent. He played college football at Louisville and was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He has also played for the New York Gi ...

was suspended the first two games of the year. Upon Brown's return, Blythe maintained his starting role. On March 26, 2020, Blythe re-signed with the Rams.

Kansas City Chiefs

Blythe signed with the

on April 5, 2021.

Seattle Seahawks

Blythe signed with the

on March 21, 2022. Blythe played and started 17 games in his one season with the Seahawks. He also started in the wild card round for the Seahawks. On February 28, 2023, Blythe announced his retirement from the NFL after seven seasons.

Personal life

Blythe is a graduate of Williamsburg (Iowa) High School, where he was a two-time all-state football player at center and a three-time state champion in wrestling. He married Kiley Ritchie, daughter of his high school football coach, in 2015. The two had known each other since elementary school, but did not begin dating until college.Letistkow, Chad, "Hawkeye leftovers: Blythe is married, Greg Davis talk and more," ''Hawekeye Central'', August 3, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2018

/ref> In June 2016, he and his wife had a son. In January 2020, he and his wife had their second child, a daughter. In October of 2022, the couple welcomed their third child, a daughter, into the world.

References

External links

Seattle Seahawks bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blythe, Austin 1992 births Living people People from Williamsburg, Iowa Players of American football from Iowa American football centers Iowa Hawkeyes football players Indianapolis Colts players Los Angeles Rams players Kansas City Chiefs players Seattle Seahawks players