Brandon Beane has managed to find hidden gems over the years as general manager of the Buffalo Bills. It is one of his best strengths as an executive which has helped him build up this roster into a championship contender.
While 2018 is the draft class that Beane acquired Josh Allen, who has become the face of the franchise for many years and is well in his prime, it was the 2022 draft class that is Beane’s best one yet. Just this past offseason, the Bills extended three players from that draft class. Up first was Khalil Shakir, then linebacker Terrel Bernard, and cornerback Christian Benford got his extension as well.
While the Bills have done a great job at extending players, they are still in the middle of contract drama with star running back James Cook, who is looking for north of $15 million per year. At this time though, Cook is in Buffalo and plans on being on the field for the Bills in the summer.
The one thing that makes the 2022 class for Buffalo so special is that none of the listed above players were drafted in the first round. It was cornerback Kaiir Elam, who the Bills traded to the Dallas Cowboys this offseason. While the Bills were hoping that Elam would be the shutdown corner, it turns out that Christian Benford would be that player even though he was drafted in the 6th round that year.
Christian Benford is a star that is finally getting the recognition he deserves
Becoming a full-time starter in 2023, Benford has become the lockdown corner that the Bills were missing since Tre’Davious White pre-torn ACL injury. Jared Dubin from CBS Sports listed Benford as the most underrated player at the cornerback position and quite frankly, it’s kind of a wrong take but it is great to see Benford getting some well-deserved credit. Here's what Dubin said about Benford:
"Benford is a true No. 1 cornerback. Last season, he allowed a passer rating of just 72.3 on throws in his direction, per Pro Football Focus, and yielded just 0.51 yards per coverage snap, which ranked in the top 35 among 243 players (i.e. not just cornerbacks) who played at least 250 snaps in coverage, via Tru Media. He's been getting better with each passing season and is now a stalwart player for Sean McDermott's Buffalo defense."Jared Dubin, CBS Sports
Just like Dubin said, Benford is already a star. He’s no longer underrated. He is the CB1 for the Bills moving forward and there is hope for first round pick Maxwell Hairston, who adds a lot of speed to the Bills defense. If Hairston can develop quickly, the Bills will have one of the most dangerous cornerback duos with Benford and Hairston.