This past NFL Draft was one of Brandon Beane’s most aggressive ones since taking over as the general manager for the Buffalo Bills. The main priority was building up the defense and they went with five consecutive defensive picks before taking an offensive player in the 5th round.
Buffalo stayed put in the first round at No. 30 and drafted cornerback Maxwell Hairston. The Bills are hoping that he can develop into a great second corner with Christian Benford, who is set to be Buffalo’s CB1 for the foreseeable future.
Then on Day 2 of the draft, the Bills were set to pick at No. 56 and No. 62. Instead, Beane decided to trade up to No. 41 (15 spots) with the Chicago Bears and they acquired South Carolina defensive tackle T.J. Sanders. So, not only did the Bills manage to address the biggest need at corner but they also got themselves a strong defensive tackle prospect in Sanders.
Then going into Round 4, the Bills would trade up again to select defensive tackle Deone Walker out of Kentucky, and that was after the Bills selected edge rusher Landon Jackson in the third round. Long story short, Buffalo brought in a lot of defensive help for the now and for the future.
Bills' draft pick already looks like a steal in minicamp
Mandatory minicamp started this week for the Bills and rookie defensive tackle T.J. Sanders is already impressing early on. According to Alex Brasky, Sanders has been dominant early on in practices which includes “bursting into the backfield regularly” and “getting his hands on passes to knock them down/nearly intercept them”.
Seeing this progression early on from Sanders is a great sign for not just 2025, but for the future in Buffalo as well. Sanders is a 3-technique who can line up over the center if necessary. With DaQuan Jones entering the last year of his contract in Buffalo, Sanders has an opportunity to show that he can be a starter sooner than later in his career and join Oliver to create chaos upfront.