5 of the greatest NFL Draft steals in Buffalo Bills history
The 2024 NFL Draft is coming soon and the Bills have 11 picks. Are there some draft steals in this class? Possibly, but let's take a stroll down memory lane and look at some of the Bills' greatest draft steals.
Brandon Beane has been criticized for his misses in the early rounds of the NFL Draft, but he's hit on some mid to late-round prospects. Guys like Dane Jackson and Levi Wallace come to mind, as well as 2022 rookies Terrel Bernard and Christian Benford. Buffalo has 10 picks in this year's draft and needs a couple to provide an immediate impact. The Bills will be looking to build some roster depth and it starts with the 28th overall pick.
The draft is always a crap shoot though but fans expect more. Last year the Bills did well with their early-round picks adding a record-setting rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid and a solid guard in O'Cyrus Torrence. Many expect the Bills to grab another weapon in the first round for Josh Allen in the form of a wide receiver, but they could go in another direction, such as edge. My guess is the pick will be one of these two positions, but can they grab a draft steal with the later-round picks?
Eight of their ten picks are from rounds four through seven. There is a good chance at least one of these become a draft steal, but will Beane's track record, don't be shocked if he finds a couple of hidden gems this year. We can go back to the early days of the Bills franchise and find some diamonds in the rough too, such as linebacker Mike Stratton, who had an outstanding 12-year career, 11 of them with the Bills. There is also corner Charles Rome, who was the 309th overall pick and went on to an 11-year career and is ranked fourth in Bills history with 28 interceptions.
The Bills also found greats in offensive tackle Howard Ballard and defensive tackle Kyle Williams. Both of these were difficult to leave off at this least, but after you see the top five, you may understand. But then again, maybe you won't. It'll be fun watching Christian Benford and Khalil Shakir's careers, they were sixth and fifth-round picks respectively, who could become huge draft steals when it's all said and done. Let's get into the top five greatest NFL draft steals in Bills' history.