It was April 27th, 2017 and the NFL Draft kicked off live from Philadelphia, PA and little did we all know that a major trade would occur that would affect the NFL moving forward. Going into that draft, it was safe to say that the Cleveland Browns were going to take edge rusher Myles Garrett out of Texas A&M. Without any surprise, Garrett was the first overall pick to Cleveland.
One major story coming out of that draft class was the top three quarterback prospects; Mitchell Trubisky, Deshaun Watson, and Patrick Mahomes. The Buffalo Bills were going into that draft with a possibility that maybe they would take one of those quarterbacks. Sean McDermott had just been hired by the Bills three months prior and the Bills were looking to do whatever they can to turn around the franchise.
Out of those three quarterbacks, Trubisky was the first to go off the board to the Chicago Bears who surprisingly traded up one spot to get him. As the rest of the draft board played out, both Watson and Mahomes were pushed down the board and then the Bills were eventually on the clock at No. 10.
The Bills had the chance to select one of those two quarterbacks to end their quarterback carousel that they have had since Jim Kelly retired. Instead of making a pick, the Bills made a massive trade with the Kansas City Chiefs, who sent Buffalo two first-round picks (one in 2017 - No. 27 overall, and one in 2018) as well as a 2017 third-round pick.
With the No. 27 overall pick, the Bills selected cornerback Tre’Davious White who would eventually become an All-Pro corner for the Bills up until injuries started to take a toll on his career. Through a couple of trades that the Bills made after getting a third-round pick from Kansas City, they eventually packaged it to move up to select Pro Bowl left tackle Dion Dawkins. They would then utilize the second first-round pick in 2018 to move up to acquire linebacker Tremaine Edmunds who was productive in Buffalo for five seasons before joining the Chicago Bears.
Despite Bills getting solid players in return, they missed out on an all-time great in Patrick Mahomes
David Kenyon from Bleacher Report created a rankings list of the top draft trades of all time and of course, at the top of the list was the Chiefs getting Patrick Mahomes in 2017, which the Bills are solely responsible for.
"Only eight seasons into his career, Patrick Mahomes is already a two-time league MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion."David Kenyon, Bleacher Report
To make matters worse for the Bills, Mahomes has accomplished all of this and he wasn’t even a starter his rookie year. In addition, he has eliminated the Bills four of the last five postseasons.
Alex Smith was the starter for the Chiefs in 2017 and while he had success with Kansas City, the Chiefs were ready to go forward with Mahomes and they traded Smith to Washington.
"Kansas City shifted to Mahomes, who's a perfect 7-for-7 in winning AFC West titles and making the AFC Championship Game. So far, the Chiefs have appeared in the Super Bowl five times with a 3-2 record on that stage."David Kenyon, Bleacher Report
Little did the whole NFL world know that a draft-day trade involving the Bills would lead to the NFL’s next dynasty in Kansas City. Even though Buffalo acquired Josh Allen, who Bills fans are thrilled to have under center in Orchard Park, this will be a continuous nightmare for the Bills for as long as Mahomes is playing at a high level.