While Buffalo Bills fans likely don't care to read about the draft at all right now, that's where the team is going to be turning their focus after another missed opportunity to make the Super Bowl. The Kansas City Chiefs once again got in their way, so it's back to the drawing board for general manager Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott.
This draft is going to shape up to be a perfect one for the Bills' needs - they could use major reinforcements in the secondary and on their defensive line, and could always use extra hands in the wide receivers room.
After their AFC Championship loss, Buffalo now knows where they'll be picking in the draft, and that gives us an idea of who they can target in the first round.
Bills land 30th overall in draft after AFC Championship loss
Buffalo will be picking 30th in the 2025 NFL Draft. They'll also have the 56th pick in the second round. They traded their third round pick to the Cleveland Browns for Amari Cooper, so they won't be picking there.
Read more: Joe Brady's rough late-game playcalling might be a Bills blessing in disguise
With the 30th pick, the Bills can definitely target a few players that fill their needs on defense. Per Tankathon's 2025 NFL Mock Draft big board, they can land defensive lineman Walter Nolen with that pick. Nolen, a top-5 D-lineman in this draft, had 26 solo tackles and 6.5 sacks for Ole Miss in 2024. He'd be a powerful defender to add to the line in 2025.
Another player the Bills could land at 30th is Derrick Harmon out of Oregon. The defensive tackle was described as "disruptive" by NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah in his first mock draft of the 2025 silly season, and he'd be a very athletic lineman to add to a Bills defense that's both aging and hitting free agency.
A solid cornerback that'd likely be available for Buffalo at 30 could be Trey Amos out of Ole Miss. Amos is a very athletic defender who's size can be very helpful for a smaller secondary like that of Buffalo's. The team really cannot afford to swing and miss on yet another CB (see, Kaiir Elam), so it'd be good to draft someone like Amos who can likely slot in immediately for Elam in 2025.
The first round isn't going to make or break this Bills team headed into 2025. It'll likely be free agency which sees a lot of movement for them, assuming they'll be aiming to bring in proven talent on both sides of the ball to make another deep postseason run next year. But, as we saw with Xavier Worthy's impact in the very game they were eliminated in, it helps to hit on prospects in the first round.