We are about a month away from the NFL Draft taking place in Green Bay, Wisconsin where NFL prospects will hear their lifelong dreams come true of making it to the league. The draft will kick off on Thursday, April 24th and go through Saturday, April 26th.
Right now, the Buffalo Bills are scheduled to have ten picks, but don’t be surprised when they trade some away to move up. It’s highly unlikely that the Bills use all ten picks during the draft.
Buffalo’s first scheduled pick is set for No. 30 so it could be awhile before the Bills make their first round pick. At the same time, Bills fans should also be prepared for the idea of Brandon Beane trading up if the right prospect is falling down the board.
Bills trade up in first round in recent NFL mock draft
NFL Draft analyst Chad Reuter released a 4-round mock draft that has the Bills trading up in the first round to address their biggest need in acquiring some secondary help.
In Reuter’s mock draft, the Bills trade up from No. 30 up to No. 24 in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings and draft Florida State cornerback Azareye’h Thomas. The Bills traded the No. 30th pick and their two fourth-round picks.
"Buffalo moves up to secure Thomas' 6-1 1/4, 197-pound frame, giving up their two fourth-round selections to Minnesota in the deal. The Vikings could stay put and take a defensive back themselves, but they currently only have four selections in this draft, so adding two early Day 3 picks might be worth the risk of moving down the board a bit."Chad Reuter, NFL.com
Getting Thomas would make it the second consecutive year the Bills selected a player out of Florida State with their first pick (WR Keon Coleman). It would also add an immediate potential starter opposite of Christian Benford. Thomas is a big corner who can stay with a receiver all over the field. While the Bills tend to play more zone, Thomas should be able to adapt to Buffalo’s scheme.
Bills/Vikings trade is a win-win for both teams
It makes sense for both the Bills and Vikings to make this trade considering the fact that the Bills would get themselves secondary help with Thomas and the Vikings get some additional picks and still get to pick in the first round. The only risk the Bills would be taking is that after the second round, they wouldn’t have a pick until the 5th round.
The Bills get Thomas to kick off their draft in this mock draft and they still have their two second-round picks. With those picks, Reuter has the Bills taking Penn State safety Kevin Winston Jr. (No. 56) and Miami wide receiver Xavier Restrepo (No. 62).
With Buffalo’s 4th-round picks that were sent to Minnesota, the Vikings would use those picks that they got from the Bills on Notre Dame tight end Mitchell Evans and Oregon State offensive lineman Joshua Gray.
Getting Thomas in the first round would be great for the Bills, just as long as he produces. The last time the Bills traded up in the first round to get a cornerback, it was Kaiir Elam who became a first-round bust and was traded to the Dallas Cowboys during the first week of free agency.