Thinking about the NFL Draft? Right in the middle of October? Sure, why not. Eventually it will be here before we know and then we will start seeing countless amounts of draft coverage. While Sean McDermott and his coaching staffare focused on the now, Brandon Beane and NFL scouts should be on the lookout for future prospects that the Buffalo Bills can add next year.
Ever since Beane took over the general manager job (right after the 2017 NFL draft), the Bills have only selected two first round offensive players, Josh Allen and Dalton Kincaid.The rest have been defense, and the Bills didn’t even have a 2020 first round pick after they traded for Stefon Diggs from the Minnesota Vikings.
This past draft, Buffalo traded back twice in the first round, which including them trading out to the 33rd overall pick at the start of the second round. They would then draft rookie wideout Keon Coleman.
As of right now, the Bills hold a 4-2 record and would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. However, there is still a lot of football left. At the same time, it looks as if Buffalo will end up in the mid to late 20s in next year’s draft.
Chris Trapasso from CBS Sports recently released a mock draft that has some surprising picks, including for the Bills. Trapasso has the Bills picking at No. 25 and to no surprise, has Buffalo going with defense. Even though that may not be the most popular pick, the player that Trapasso has the Bills picking would be a steal for Buffalo.
University of Tennessee DE James Pearce Jr. mocked to Buffalo Bills
"Pearce looked like a future top-10 pick after an incredible 2023 season at Tennessee. His 2024 hasn't been as efficient, but the length, burst, flexibility and flashes of pass-rush moves are there. More outside rushing help in Buffalo."Chris Trapasso, CBS Sports
Prior to the 2024 season starting, Pearce was mocked as one of, if not the best college football player. He had a phenomenal 2023 season with 9.5 sacks, 27 total tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and one pick-six. The start he has had this season hasn’t exactly been the best, recording only 2 sacks, but he does have 19 total tackles.
The Bills are more than likely going to be moving on from Von Miller after this season and then A.J. Epenesa will be entering another contract year in 2025. The Bills are going to need to address their edge rushers and getting a player like Pearce Jr. with his talent would be a perfect fit. Adding him with someone like Greg Rousseau (who should get paid by the Bills), would create a solid pass rush that the Bills could have for a long time.