Despite not breaking the NFL Combine forty-yard dash record like he promised, the Buffalo Bills are still showing plenty of interest in Texas Longhorn wide receiver, Isaiah Bond. The Bills brass is staying in town following the Longhorns Pro Day in Austin on Tuesday, and are reportedly taking the 21-year-old to dinner on Thursday night, per Aaron Wilson.
That will also reportedly be followed up with a private workout with the team on Friday. At some point in the near future, Bond will also make a pre-draft visit to Buffalo.
Both fans and the draft prospect were disappointed when the speedster only ran a 4.39 forty at the combine back in February. The 5’11” 180 lbs junior reportedly improved on that, running a 4.34 at his pro day. Bond also showed off in drills, as it was said he didn’t drop a single pass and really flashed his route-running skills. He’s currently projected to go anywhere from the second to the third round in April.
While draft season comes with loads of smoke and mirrors, the Bills are doing their due diligence on Bond.
Bond also told reporters he spoke with the team at the combine. In hindsight, the fit makes sense, as the Bills have been searching for, and lacking, a speedy receiver for a while.
The argument could be made that speed is the only thing the Bills offense is missing in the receiver room. Bond is also an explosive threat, who can break one lose whenever he has the ball in his hands. Bond reached a top speed of 24.17 mph at the combine, second-fastest among all players there.
The Georgia native played two seasons at Alabama where he appeared in 27 games. He recorded 65 catches, 888 yards, five touchdowns, and averaged 13.7 yards per catch. He transferred to Texas last season where he played in 14 games and pushed through injuries. Bond recorded 34 catches, for 540 yards, and five touchdowns, with a 15.9 yards per catch average.
He also added 98 rushing yards on four attempts for Texas. He played a large part in helping open up the field for fellow receiver and top prospect, Matthew Golden, operating often as a decoy for Texas’ offense.
Bond runs good routes, is twitchy, and can play both in the slot or out wide. He was a state champion track runner in high school and has really nice acceleration. NFL Draft analyst, Lance Zierlein has Bond’s NFL player comparison as Miami Dolphins’ receiver, Jaylen Waddle. Next Gen NFL Stats has Bond rated with a 6.3 prospect grade, which translates in their model to developing into a plus starter in the NFL. While Bond clearly needs to develop, you can’t teach speed and he has it. His speedy presence immediately makes an impact in a team’s receiver room.
The Bills brass have been very vocal for years about adding speed to their receiver room, however, outside of Xavier Worthy last year, who the team clearly wasn’t high on, the opportunity hasn’t presented itself. With Bond projected as a second-to-third-round selection, the Bills could be in a prime spot to acquire his skillset.
The Bills currently own two second-round selections, 56th, and 62nd overall. The team also has tons of ways to move back into the third round, where as of now, they don’t have a pick,. The Bills are currently slated to make 10 picks in the draft, and you can bet they will be moving up throughout the draft or trading back and building capital for next year’s draft.
Depending on how the draft board plays out, the Bills could address their three biggest needs early on with premium picks. The team can still address cornerback and defensive tackle, their largest needs, early on.
That still leaves the ability to acquire Bond and fill their wide receiver need. It would give MVP quarterback Josh Allen a downfield speed threat, for the first time in a long time, making an already elite offense, even deadlier.