How the Buffalo Bills can transform the receiving corps in 2019

Draft an Iowa tight end

Wide receiver is a huge need for Buffalo, but what differentiates many of the best passing attacks is a game-changing tight end.

The tight end position creates mismatches all over the field for offensive coordinators and can help open up an offense. Buffalo has never truly had an elite tight end and they have not utilized the position like many have around the league.

That should change this year.

Much like the wide receiver position, tight end is a position with an extremely deep pool of talent. At the top of list in terms of the best tight ends in the class are Iowa products Noah Fant and T.J. Hockenson.

A few weeks ago I wrote about the duo and what they could mean for Buffalo. The two did nothing short of solidifying their status as the top playmakers at their position in the upcoming draft with eye-popping numbers at the NFL Combine.

Fant checked in at 6-foot-4 and 249 pounds. He managed to get all of that frame moving very quickly as he ran a 4.5 40-yard dash and added insane numbers like a 39.5-inch vertical jump and a 127-inch broad jump, amongst other insane numbers.

Hockenson came in at 6-foot-5 and 251 pounds, running a 4.7 40-yard dash. He was behind Fant in vertical and broad jumps, but his numbers were still extremely impressive.

If they are dead set on improving their weapons for Josh Allen, Buffalo should find their way to one of the two. Fant proves to be the more dangerous receiving threat, but Hockenson is the more complete tight end as a fantastic receiver that can block with the best of the them. Adding one of the two allows for Buffalo to not only improve upon their pass game, but their run game as well.

Selecting one of the two would be huge for the Bills. I could see both of them going anywhere from No. 9 into the second just because of the depth of the class. Buffalo could certainly use that to their advantage as if they are both there at No. 9. The team could trade back and have an opportunity to select one.

My choice would be Hockenson due to his ability to both catch and block at an extremely high level. However, if the team were to take Fant I would be over the moon as well.

Providing the offense with another weapon that immediately creates a mismatch and can give Allen a safety blanket should be a top priority for the team. A big body over the middle of the field would be huge in the red zone and pull coverage away from the outside receivers as well.

If Buffalo can follow these steps, their offense could have a completely different look than the way they ended the 2018 season. While generally young, the team could have their players grow together to formulate one of the best offenses in the entire league.