NFL Mock Draft: Bills Try to Find Answer for Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes

NFL Mock Draft: Bills Try to Find Answer for Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes

Just like every other team in the AFC, the Buffalo Bills have to get over the Patrick Mahomes hump in order to capitalize before their Super Bowl window closes completely shut.

Buffalo's first-round pick this April will be one of the first big offseason steps geared toward eventually meeting Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the postseason again. And in a post-Super Bowl mock draft, CBS Sports predicts the Bills will make a move that resembles exactly that.

Illinois Fighting Illini defensive lineman Jer'Zhan Newton (94) reacts to a missed stop in the third quarter at Huntington Bank Stadium / © Matt Krohn, USA TODAY

The site predicts Buffalo will select Illinois defensive lienman Jer'Zhan Newton with the No. 28 overall pick. Here's what CBS Sports had to say:

"Buffalo will always have Kansas City in mind when building out their roster, and having a stout defensive tackle next to Ed Oliver who also has pass rush chops is critical for the Bills when they face Patrick Mahomes again." 

Newton was a beacon of production for Illinois in 2023. He registered 7.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss along with a forced fumble. In his last five games of the season, Newton notched five sacks as his consistency towards the end of the year stood out.

NFL Mock Draft: Bills Select 'What They Need'

The 2023 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, Newton tallied 102 quarterback pressures over the last two seasons, the most by an FBS defensive tackle in that time by a whopping 35 pressures, per CBS Sports.

The 2024 NFL Draft begins on Thursday, April 25 in Detroit.