The Buffalo Bills had back-to-back picks in the 5th round (Nos. 167 & 168), but they decided to trade back and gain an extra pick from the Detroit Lions. Buffalo gained picks #181 and #213 in that deal, and the Bills have spent the No. 181 pick on Penn State defensive tackle, Zane Durant.
Durant is not just Buffalo’s first defensive tackle pick, he is the first defensive tackle addition the Bills have had all offseason. With Buffalo having a terrible run-defense last season, they now add a player in Durant who is quick off the line. He is a bit undersized, standing at just 6-foot-1, 294lbs.
In four seasons with Nittany Lions, Durant tallied 89 total tackles, 10 sacks, and he even managed to grab an interception this past season. He is not someone that is going to command a double team block, but he fires off the ball fast which can be beneficial against the run.
Even though Durant was selected with the last pick in the 5th round, Buffalo drafting him may have just put a certain defensive tackle on roster notice as OTAs and training camp start to come up.
Zane Durant selection puts DT DeWayne Carter on notice
With the Bills going to a 3-4 defense under Jim Leonhard, they are going to need quality play out of their big guys in the middle of the trenches. DeWayne Carter has just 11 games under his belt as a Bills, all of which came from his rookie season back in 2024. As a third round pick in 2024, Carter had just 14 total tackles before suffering a wrist injury that kept him sidelined near the end of the season.
Then before the regular season last year, Carter suffered a torn Achilles that took his 2025 season away from him. Now that there is a new scheme coming into play under Leonhard, Carter already had that up against him but now he may have some serious competition with the drafting of Durant.
The Bills already have Ed Oliver, Deone Walker, T.J. Sanders, and Phidarian Mathis. Now with Durant coming into the picture, Carter could be in roster trouble if he doesn’t bounce back from his injury last season.
Bills fans will find out sooner than later if the drafting of Durant could push Carter down the depth chart, or possibly even have him lose a spot on this roster.
Add us as a preferred source on Google