Buffalo Bills Ranked Among Best Teams For 1st-Round Draft Choices

The Buffalo Bills must nail the upcoming NFL Draft to replenish a roster aging out of its best chance at a Super Bowl. Can Brandon Beane be trusted to do so?

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) is tackled by New York Jets running back Israel Abanikanda / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

The Buffalo Bills needed to hit one one of their first-round picks in the last decade. In 2018, they traded up with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the chance to draft their franchise quarterback.

Four consecutive AFC East titles and five trips to the playoffs later, it’s safe to say Josh Allen was the right pick.

General manager Brandon Beane’s track record later in drafts has been suspect, but Allen isn’t alone in his status as a first-round contributor for Buffalo. How do the Bills stack up against the rest of the league?

According to Pro Football Focus, Buffalo ranks as one of the five-best first-round drafting teams in the NFL since 2014.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17). / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

“Buffalo is another team that receives a huge amount of credit for nailing its quarterback selection in drafting Josh Allen in 2018,” Sam Monson wrote. “Allen was the third quarterback off the board that season and was a wildly risky pick, given his inconsistency and inaccuracy at the time. Buffalo rode out early-career struggles, and he has developed into one of the game’s best passers.”

Buffalo’s defense has reaped the benefits of early-round investments, too. Defensive tackle Ed Oliver – the presumptive top prospect in his class before his final collegiate season – has blossomed into one of the league’s better defensive tackles. He’s now providing surplus value on a four-year, $68 million extension.

Alongside him is edge rusher Greg Rousseau, who has posted 17 sacks across three professional seasons. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds would go on to secure a four-year, $72 million contract with the Chicago Bears – a testament to his value, even if many around the league saw it as a bit of an overpay.

Of course, corner Tre’Davious White, who recently departed in free agency, was a stalwart boundary corner in Buffalo. The ending of his tenure, along with safeties Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde, represents the ending of an era and an increased emphasis on the NFL Draft. With veterans finding new homes and Allen’s extension on the books, this year’s draft may be the most important since 2018.

While not perfect – corner Kaiir Elam and Shaq Lawson fell well short of expectations, Bills Mafia has reason to feel confident in Beane making the high-profile decision it takes to build a competitive core.