Even though the Buffalo Bills didn't end up picking any players in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, they created plenty of headlines with their trade back with the Kansas City Chiefs. It wasn't so much the trade but who they traded with and in the end it was the right move at the time.
The trade itself actually was pretty good for the Bills as they received pick 32, pick 95, and pick 221 for pick 28, pick 133, and pick 248. So they would move back four spots while moving up 38 picks, almost a full round, between the fourth and third round as well as move up 27 picks in the later part of the NFL Draft.
This was great value for the Bills but where the contention lies is who the Bills traded with and who the Chiefs ultimately would pick at 28 overall. Let's start with the pick itself, which the Chiefs would use on wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
The former Texas wide receiver was one of the more talked about prospects after setting a Combine record with his 40-yard dash time of 4.21 seconds. This will immediately conjure up memories of Tyreek Hill in this Chiefs offense and gives Patrick Mahomes potential a great deep threat.
However, just because he showed off great straight-line speed at the Combine doesn't immediately mean he will be a great deep threat. It is also clear that while there is a need at wide receiver the Bills didn't view Worthy as a first-round pick, or a great fit in this offense, or they would have made the pick.
This then raises the question of should the Bills have even made the trade with the Chiefs. Fans will remember the 2017 NFL Draft trade that allowed the Chiefs to select Patrick Mahomes and for some it feels like deja vu as the Chiefs will get the better of the Bills once again.
However, if the Bills didn't do the trade it was probably very likely that Worthy would still be a Kansas City Chief this morning. The Bills were not going to pick Worthy at 28 just to block the Chiefs and they would have picked their player they wanted there. The Chiefs would have then continued to work the phone lines to move up to get Worthy and probably been successful.
Instead, the Bills now have three picks in the Top 100 and appear poised to get the player they would have taken at 28th overall at 33rd overall while adding additional draft capital.
There is certainly a possibility that when looking back on this trade, it will be another example of the Chiefs getting the better of the Bills. However, with the information the team had at their disposal at the time of the trade, this was the right move that should give them the chance to add better players right now.