It’s a good draft to need an edge rusher, as the Buffalo Bills do. That said, this class isn’t exactly filled with Myles Garrett and T.J. Watt clones. Many of these young pass rushers have huge question marks, including those expected to go early in the first round.
On Thursday, measurements for trench defenders began circulating, and the annual tradition of putting a ton of stock into those measurements quickly got underway. In the process, two notable pass rushers, Miami’s Rueben Bain and Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell, checked in with concerning arm-length measurements.
Bain, who’s highly likely to fall to Buffalo at pick No. 26, measured in with 30 ⅞” arms. Howell, a much more realistic target for the Bills in the first round, measured in with even shorter arms at 30 ¼”. Howell had been mocked in the mid-to-late teens of the first round, but with those measurements, his stock could take a hit before April’s draft in Pittsburgh.
Arm-length concerns cloud Texas A&M EDGE Cashius Howell’s draft stock, possibly to the Bills' benefit
Howell is a player for the Bills to keep a close eye on as the draft unfolds. He’s a menacing pass rusher who picked up 27 sacks in his college career. That said, he’s not 6-foot-4; he’s 6-foot-2 and some change, and his arm length is a point of concern because of historical ramifications.
As ESPN’s Matt Miller pointed out, if Howell and Bain are selected in the first round, they would have the shortest arms of any dedicated pass rusher selected in the first round since 1999. Howell's arms are the shortest of any drafted pass rusher in the past 20 years. It’s a game of inches, and teams take every inch into consideration when deciding between two players.
That said, the Bills are in a precarious spot with the No. 26 overall pick in the first round. While the class is deep on the edge, it’s hard to hit a home run that late in the first round, especially when your options are among the 4th to 7th best players at the position.
Still, Howell’s arm length could certainly shy some teams away in favor of a more prototypical-sized pass rusher, like a T.J. Parker from Clemson. All it takes is for the teams like Tampa Bay or Dallas to swing on those players instead, and Howell could be there for Buffalo.
In that scenario, the Bills are still coming out as winners rather than settling at the position. After all, new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard has plenty of experience working with short-arm pass rushers. And Howell himself pointed out that it didn’t hamper his production too much, as he racked up 11 sacks in the SEC last season.
Texas A&M edge rusher Cashius Howell is Daniel Jeremiah’s No. 21 player player in the 2026 draft. But his 30 1/4 arms are the shortest of any edge drafted in the past 20 years.
— Matt Parrino (@MattParrino) February 26, 2026
Howell said those are just the cards he was dealt: “Production has never been an issue for me.” pic.twitter.com/LtXsHnPrum
Some analysts aren’t swayed too heavily by his arm length. But plenty of other fans and analysts think it could be a hindrance down the line. After all, it’s not like every SEC offensive tackle goes on to play in the NFL, and plenty of short-armed pass rushers and blockers from that conference have flamed out over the years.
But for Buffalo, Howell might be a perfect fit regardless of his arm length. While the former Aggie can undo some of the negative coverage of his arm length with a great showing on the field in Indianapolis, there’s no doubt that general manager Brandon Beane won’t be too upset if Howell drops down the board because of his measurements.