Buffalo Bills NFL Draft: GM Brandon Beane’s history of trading first round picks
By Kevin Devine
2020 – Beane trades Buffalo Bills first round pick in 2020 NFL Draft to Vikings for WR Stefon Diggs
In 2020, looking to put the Bills over the top following a heartbreaking overtime playoff loss to the Houston Texans, Beane took a different route, trading the Bills first round pick (#22 overall) in the 2020 NFL Draft along with a fifth-round selection (155 overall), a sixth round selection (201 overall) and a fourth-round selection in 2021 to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for wide receiver Stefon Diggs and a seventh round pick.
This has become one of the most interesting trades in NFL history with multiple layers for both teams. For the Vikings, they continued to wheel and deal in that draft ending up with an astounding fifteen selections overall. With the pick they received from the Bills, they selected Justin Jefferson who has become a superstar for them.
In addition to Diggs, the Bills selected Dane Jackson with the other pick they received from Minnesota. Jackson has become a valuable piece of the Bills’ defense in his own right.
Diggs however was the key piece and makes this trade a win-win. He blossomed with Josh Allen, bringing both of their games to new heights and forming one of the most dynamic passing attacks in the NFL. His on-field excellence and fiery personality have made him a leader on and off the field, and a personality embraced by the Buffalo community.