Mock draft points Bills toward bold first-round fix at wide receiver

The Buffalo Bills are poised for another postseason run, though not at the top of the AFC East as they’ve grown accustomed to over the past five seasons. Partially to blame for the dip to a likely Wild Card appearance this season is the play of the wide receiver group.

No wide receiver is projected to finish with a 1,000-yard campaign for the second-straight season, with Khalil Shakir as the leading pass-catcher. Keon Coleman had an electric Week 1, but has since plummeted after spending most of November on the bench.

The team signed Brandin Cooks and brought Gabe Davis back to address the situation, but the Bills have found few solutions for the struggles out wide. With the regular season drawing to a close, it’s about that time to start looking at external options to correct the position group through the NFL Draft.

Lousiville's Chris Bell stands out among realistic late–first-round targets for Buffalo Bills

Our friends at Saturday Blitz recently published a mock draft that saw the Bills find their potential solution at wide receiver in Louisville receiver Chris Bell.

“Chris Bell brings a great blend of size and speed, and would be a great compliment to the pieces in the room,” Nicholas Rome wrote.

Bell, a 6-foot-2, 220-pound option, is a fringe first-round prospect whose scouting report comps with Xavier Leggett of the Carolina Panthers, a second-round pick in 2024. This season, Bell has caught 72 passes for 917 yards and six touchdowns for the Cardinals.

Bell could be a solid fit on the outside in Buffalo’s offense without taking away from Coleman’s development and Shakir’s usefulness underneath. He works well in traffic across the middle of the field and can win some contested catch situations on the outside.

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Of course, Buffalo will be picking at the end of the first round next spring, barring a trade up for someone with a stronger pro prospect profile or a bolder move in free agency. That said, Bell is a player Bills fans can keep an eye out for as the draft process unfolds.

Still, with a weaker receiver class, it’s tough to be in a situation to chase the position as a need. A best-case scenario for Buffalo would instead see Coleman find his footing back in the lineup to provide more confidence in the position so they can invest that first-round pick elsewhere.