Every NFL Draft, there is always one team that comes out of the event with a lot of criticism. Whether it’s because they reached for a player, or weren’t aggressive enough. Either way, it’s not fun being labeled as a loser coming out of the draft.
The Buffalo Bills cannot be that team that loses out on making a big impact in the draft. Last year’s draft was a little bit of a rough going for Brandon Beane. Buffalo traded down with the Kansas City Chiefs, and would then trade out of the first round with the Carolina Panthers. Their best draft choice from last year was running back Ray Davis, who was a fourth-round pick.
With the NFL Draft taking place next week, the Bills have to do whatever it takes to avoid going through heartbreak of losing out on players, or even making a huge mistake that could cost them big time.
4 nightmare scenarios for Buffalo Bills in this year's NFL Draft
Buffalo gets desperate, trade up and reach for a player
Whether it’s in the first round or sometime after, the Bills cannot afford to trade up (and give up additional picks) to select a player that you could consider a reach. Now granted, the front office for the Bills knows the players better than we do, but we have a sense of where each player could be drafted.
The last time the Bills traded up in what looked like a desperate move was back in 2022 when they traded up to acquire Kaiir Elam. Look at how that worked out…let’s not do that type of move again.
Chiefs jump ahead of the Bills once again
This scenario applies more to the first round because the Chiefs are just one spot behind the Bills at No. 31. Going back to the 2022 draft, the Chiefs jumed ahead of the Bills and drafted CB Trent McDuffie who has become one of the best corners in the game. This forced the Bills to trade up to get Kaiir Elam who was a bust for the organization.
The Bills and Chiefs traded with each other last year that gave the Chiefs a wideout in Xavier Worthy, who was a contributor in helping the Chiefs eliminate the Bills in the playoffs. We don’t need another year of the Chiefs getting ahead of the Bills to take someone that would have been a fantastic addition to Buffalo.
Bills leave NFL Draft with no potential James Cook replacement
There has been non-stop drama involving James Cook and his contractual demands that he is looking for from the Bills. He has been very vocal about getting $15 million per year but it doesn’t look like Cook and the Bills are anywhere near an agreement.
Brandon Beane made it clear that no deal would be finalized anytime soon, and then we hear news about Cook putting his Orchard Park home up for sale.
If the Bills aren’t thinking that they will be able to land an extension with Cook, then it would be smart for them to find his replacement in this draft. This year’s running back class is expected to be one of the strongest in a long time. If they leave this draft without a potential replacement for Cook, they are taking a massive risk of not having another playmaker in the backfield for the future.
Bills don’t get a rookie QB to develop behind Josh Allen
This is least scariest scenario for the Bills because obviously having Josh Allen under center makes them a championship contender. At the same time, one of the biggest problems that the Bills constantly face every offseason is their salary cap. Well, they can fix a little bit of that issue by taking one of their ten draft picks and bringing in a rookie quarterback who can develop behind Allen and cost the Bills almost nothing.
I was hoping that the Bills would have drafted quarterback Joe Milton III in last year’s draft, but he went to New England instead (and is now in Dallas). Milton and Allen have a lot of similarities in their respective game which would have kept continuity in the offense.
Buffalo has had a revolving door of backup QBs for awhile and it’s money that they wasting in all honesty. It’s time to invest in a solid backup quarterback for the next four years and have them learn behind Allen. Then whatever happens, happens. At the end of the day, there is no sense in wasting money for a backup quarterback.