Buffalo Bills: Reviewing the entire 2019 draft class

The Buffalo Bills ended up drafting eight players in the 2019 NFL Draft. Major needs were addressed and the initial reaction is positive to the class.

The Buffalo Bills started the 2019 NFL Draft by landing Ed Oliver at pick No. 9 overall. Him falling that far didn’t seem likely at first but the Bills are lucky to have him.

Taking Oliver set the tone for what ended up being a solid draft, at least on paper.

The first two picks focused on improving the lines, which was the smart move to make. The Bills added two potential franchise-changing pieces in Oliver and Cody Ford. There is no reason why both can’t be here for the next decade.

The one thing fans will notice is that no wide receivers were taken. The Bills did add two tight ends.

Cole Beasley and John Brown were added to the roster earlier this offseason and it seemed that the Bills may decide to take a top receiver prospect in the draft as well. Instead, the Bills followed a lot of other teams in not spending too much on a receiver.

Marquise Brown was the first receiver off the board at No. 25 overall. N’Keal Harry was the only other receiver drafted in the first round at No. 32 overall.

There must be a lot of faith in Robert Foster and Zay Jones, or Brandon Beane just truly didn’t like any of the receiver prospects.

Someone Beane did like was Devin Singletary at No. 74 overall. The addition of another running back could mean LeSean McCoy isn’t on the roster when the season starts. That gives the Bills four main backs in Singletary, McCoy, T.J. Yeldon and Frank Gore. There are still several others on the roster.

The fact the Bills didn’t need to draft a quarterback really opened things up and allowed multiple holes to be filled. The Bills did so well in free agency that a lot of the picks seemed to be made in order to add depth. The selection of Oliver was the only one that addressed a position where a key veteran just left the team.

I have seen several national analysts pick the Bills as a potential surprise contender in 2019. I’d argue that Bills fans wouldn’t be too surprised given how well the team has done this offseason.

The success just needs to transfer to on-field success come September.