Analysis: Reaction to Bills' draft class has been over the top. Just take a deep breath

Analysis: Reaction to Bills' draft class has been over the top. Just take a deep breath

The toxicity that sometimes oozed from the Buffalo Bills’ fan base this weekend bordered on the absurd, Jay Skurski writes.

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I get it.

It’s tempting in this social media era to have a reaction to everything, but it’s really not necessary. That thought was top of mind throughout the three-day NFL draft, which wrapped up Saturday evening.

The toxicity that sometimes oozed from the Buffalo Bills’ fan base this weekend bordered on the absurd. Perhaps, hopefully, that was limited to X, the social media platform that’s not exactly known for measured, nuanced discussion. It’s common for that platform to bring out the worst in us.

But if it truly is shared by more than just a vocal online minority … well, that’s a problem.


Bills general manager Brandon Beane made seven trades and wound up with 10 picks during the NFL draft this weekend.
Derek Gee, Buffalo News

No matter what the president and general manager Brandon Beane did, he couldn’t seem to win. Trade down? How could he? Then he did it again, and again? What, is he crazy?

Beane made it clear ahead of the draft that his number of true first-round grades was down this year. I guess that he considered somewhere in the range of 15 to 18 players to be first-round talents. Once those players were gone, why not move down? The Bills are transitioning to a 3-4 defense under new coordinator Jim Leonhard. Finding players who fit what Leonhard wants to do makes sense. Adding picks to build roster depth is a logical move. Beane did that by swinging seven trades over the three-day event.

Based on the reaction to pretty much anything he did, however, Beane has seemingly become public enemy No. 1 in Buffalo. It’s gone entirely overboard. Has he had his share of draft misses? Sure, just as every general manager does. He also has hit on picks, which have seemingly been forgotten.

So here’s some groundbreaking analysis: Some of the picks Beane made this weekend will likely work out, and some of them won’t. It’s understandable that fans and/or media will have opinions – sometimes strong ones – on the players Beane takes. That's a natural part of the cycle.

I’ve disagreed with parts of Beane's roster construction. I've thought for years that the team should draft a vertical threat at wide receiver. I would have liked to see the team add a true nose tackle this weekend for Leonhard's 3-4 scheme.

It didn’t happen. So be it.

The nonstop negativity isn’t healthy, though. So allow me to serve as a ray of sunshine during these rainy days by providing a glass-half-full look at each of the Bills’ selections.

Edge rusher T.J. Parker, who entered the media room at One Bills Drive and shook every reporter’s hand Saturday before starting his first news conference, should be an immediate member of the rotation up front. Parker’s scouting reports make prominent mention of how he’s a strong run defender – an area of weakness from last season, the Bills are determined to shore up.

“Some guys are two-down players. Some guys are (designated pass rushers). I feel like T.J. has proven the last couple of years to bring a three-down skill set, and I just think that adds more value,” Beane said.

An improved run defense should give Parker, Greg Rousseau, and Bradley Chubb more opportunities to get after the opposing quarterback on third down.

In the second round, the Bills traded up for Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun. That pick seems to have caused the most consternation among the fan base. The reason being the Bills have their penciled-in starters at cornerback in Christian Benford and Maxwell Hairston. Conveniently, those losing their mind over the pick are ignoring the fact that Hairston couldn’t stay healthy during his final college season at Kentucky, then was hurt twice as a rookie, missing the Bills’ playoff games as a result.

Are we really to believe that Hairston is going to make it through an entire season, starting all 17 games and however many the Bills play in the postseason, when he’s not been able to do that two years in a row? Benford also missed three games in the regular season in 2025, and he left the 2024 AFC championship game against Kansas City because of a concussion. The point is, depth at cornerback is an absolute necessity, and the Bills had none of it before this weekend. Was it the biggest need on the roster, as Beane said after the draft? That’s up for debate, but it was absolutely a need.

Drafting Igbinosun and then doubling down at the position in the seventh round with Missouri cornerback Toriano Pride Jr. provides some of that missing depth.

“Maybe it's a scar from last year or a previous year, from the playoffs, but just our depth's really been tested there for a variety of reasons,” Beane said. “You always learn as you go through it.”

With the first pick of the fourth round, the Bills chose Boston College offensive lineman Jude Bowry. The team lost swing tackle Ryan Van Demark and starting left guard David Edwards in free agency this offseason. Beane’s No. 1 priority always must be to protect quarterback Josh Allen. Bowry will come in and at least compete for a job, whether that’s at guard or tackle.

Beane’s picks in the fourth round were actually met with applause online, or so it seemed.

After Bowry, he chose UConn wide receiver Skyler Bell with the No. 125 overall selection. Bell was a consensus All-American who finished in the top four in the nation in catches (101), yards (1,278), and touchdown receptions (13). If there is one position fans have absolutely crushed Beane for not addressing, it’s wide receiver. So, he did with a pretty promising prospect, especially considering where Bell went in the draft.

The very next pick, Beane chose TCU linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr, addressing another one of the roster’s perceived greatest needs. Fans wanted the Bills to address inside linebacker earlier in the draft. For his part, it sure sounded like Beane wanted to, as well; the board just didn’t fall that way. Still, Elarms-Orr was a productive player for the Horned Frogs, finishing with 130 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, four sacks, and two passes defensed. He’s undersized at 6-foot-2, 234 pounds, but that’s part of the reason he was available in the fourth round.

“I think if Elarms-Orr was bigger, he's probably not hanging around where we took him in the draft,” Beane said. “Yes, there were guys we valued a little higher in the draft, but they just didn't fall that way, but we brought him in for a (top) 30 visit. We really liked who he was. We think he's an arrow-up player. He'll get stronger here.”

In the fifth round, Beane chose South Carolina defensive back Jalon Kilgore – a player some draft analysts had rated as a third-round talent.

“It’s competition. A lot of these moves that we’ll continue to talk about are just trying to add more depth and more competition,” Beane said.

The Bills’ Day 3 picks concluded with Penn State defensive tackle Zane Durant, Pride, Florida punter Tommy Doman, and Texas A&M guard Ar'maj Reed-Adams. All of them filled specific needs on the roster.

Will any of them turn into more than that?

It’s far too early to say.

The only conclusion we can take from this weekend is this: Let’s all take a deep breath.

 

[HipKat]

Defense was the focus of the Bills' offseason. Will the changes be enough?​

Bills counting on new play-caller, versatile players to fix defense in 2026

Nearly three months since Joe Brady's promotion, we finally have a clearer picture of the players whom the Bills will count on to upgrade their defense.

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With one answer during a nearly hour-long press conference three months ago, Joe Brady explained one of the significant differences we'll see from the Buffalo Bills' defense.

The scheme Sean McDermott used during his nine seasons in Orchard Park is gone, and its replacement is better suited to stop the ever-evolving offenses in the NFL.


Clemson defensive end T.J. Parker comes off the line of scrimmage against SMU on Oct. 18, 2025, in Clemson, S.C.
Parker had 126 tackles and 21½ sacks in three college seasons. Jacob Kupferman, Associated Press

"No longer are you able to just know where guys are going to be when they're going to be there," said Brady, communicating his vision for the Bills' defense under his leadership.

The vision started to become a reality soon thereafter, as Brady hired former NFL safety Jim Leonhard as his new defensive coordinator. Leonhard, the Broncos' secondary coach and pass game coordinator the past two seasons, brings a modern version of Rex Ryan's 3-4 defense. For Leonhard's game plans to work, the Bills had to use free agency and the draft to find more talented, versatile players who can serve as unpredictable chess pieces to take control of games, rather than the coaching staff having to adjust in-game each week.

Nearly three months since Brady's introductory press conference, we finally have a clearer picture of the players whom the Bills will count on to ensure Josh Allen has more opportunities to score points. We won't know until the regular season whether the Bills' new brain trust actually made the right changes on defense, but it has been the focus of general manager and president of football operations Brandon Beane's efforts since he traded for wide receiver DJ Moore. Six of the Bills' picks in the 2026 draft and 12 of their 19 picks in the past two drafts were on defense.

Wide receiver was no longer a priority in the draft once the Bills traded their second-round pick for Moore. Analysts who evaluate and grade the eligible prospects kept suggesting otherwise, but they ignored the bread crumbs Brady had dropped since shortly after the scouting combine.

"We've talked, going back to the combine, in order to be able to rush the passer, you have to stop the run first," said Brady. "A conscious thing of making sure we're putting together a scheme and have guys that have the personality and the understanding that comes with being able to then get to the point that we can rush the passer, getting to the point that we can defend the pass in third-and-long situations. I'm excited, going back to T.J. Parker right from the jump. That has to excite you. ... Those are the type of guys that help put together your identity and vision that you have."

The Bills' defense ranked 28th last season in rushing yards allowed per game (136.2). Six times, they allowed at least 175 rushing yards. Sixty-five times, a rusher gained at least 10 yards on a carry, making the Bills' defense tied for the second-worst mark. They gave up too many explosive plays and, too often, they could not get off the field when their defense needed a stop. Buffalo was 25th in third-down conversion rate allowed and 31st in first-down conversion rate allowed on third-and-short.

Too many of the Bills' defensive players – especially those in recent draft classes – suffered injuries, especially during McDermott's practices. His nickel-based defense had aging players who lacked speed and versatility. More often than not, offensive coordinators knew where Buffalo's best defensive players, such as Greg Rousseau, were going to line up. Predictability led to vulnerability. And if you can't stop the run, you're not getting to the quarterback.

In-game adjustments, sparked by creative blitz packages and coverage plans, kept the Bills above water, at times, but once again, the approach caused them to crumble in critical moments of big games. In its last six playoff losses, Buffalo allowed an average of 33.2 points and 413.5 yards.

The Bills' new defensive coordinator was shaped by his two seasons working with the Broncos. Vance Joseph, the coordinator of Denver's defense, confuses quarterbacks and frustrates play-callers with the different looks he uses throughout games. Opponents will not see the same looks down to down in Buffalo this season.

Brady first took note of Leonhard in January 2025 as Buffalo prepared to face Denver in a wild-card playoff game. The Broncos' defensive backs were aggressive, well-coached technicians. Leonhard emerged as Brady's choice, in part because of his vision for how to deploy players.

"There are unique skill sets all around the NFL, where guys don’t quite fit in your traditional box of edge defender, defensive tackle, nickel, safety," Leonhard explained to reporters in February. "And that’s where I’ve had the most success in my career as a coach, was finding those guys that fit in a little bit different role. You have to be more creative in order to play to their strengths a little bit more often because it may not be just traditionally they’re elite at this skill or they’re elite at this skill.

"Their main value is the versatility that they bring, being a Swiss Army knife, high football IQ, and communication skills. The more people you have in that room, it doesn’t really matter pre-snap presentation, what it looks like. You can still get to the same concepts."

The philosophy shaped the Bills' approach to the offseason. First, they signed nickel cornerback Dee Alford from the Atlanta Falcons. Alford can line up on the boundary or in the slot. He's a quick athlete who can cover receivers in one-on-one situations, a strength that can allow the play-caller more freedom with blitz packages.

Next, Beane signed tenacious safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who wore out his welcome on previous teams through a trash-talking, hit-everything-that-moves approach to practices. Everywhere he has gone during his NFL journey, Gardner-Johnson has won. If there is an injury at nickel corner, Gardner-Johnson can play the position. If a boundary cornerback goes down, Alford can move to the outside, and Gardner-Johnson can be in the slot.

Former Bengals safety Geno Stone came aboard on a one-year contract because he is a cover player who specializes in taking away passes to the middle of the field. Stone may be more of a sub-package player if he makes the 53-man roster, but he will also help on special teams.

The most important addition of the group was veteran edge rusher Bradley Chubb, who has 19½ sacks over his last two healthy seasons. Chubb's age (29) and injury history (missed all of 2024) caused him to drop into Buffalo's price range, but he is also an ideal fit in the Bills' defense. As a rookie in 2018, Chubb totaled 12 sacks in a 3-4 scheme like the one Leonhard is using in Buffalo. He may not need to play every snap, either, because Beane used his first pick of the draft this week on another rusher, Clemson's T.J. Parker, who fits the plan for the Bills' defense.

The logic behind the Bills selecting Parker with the third pick of the second round should not get lost because Beane labeled Parker's 2025 season as "not as consistent." Nobody on Clemson's defense was consistent. The group struggled to adjust to a new scheme and took too long to round into form following the Tigers' 3-5 start. Parker is just 21 years old.

Over his final two seasons, Parker totaled 29 tackles for loss and 16 sacks. He is a power rusher, like Rousseau, with long arms and a mature understanding of how to use his hands to win at the point of attack. Parker doesn't have the explosiveness the Bills may need, but he projects as more of a complete player with his ability to stop the run. His skill set, Beane said, is strong enough to play on all three downs. If you're a general manager balancing the short- and long-term, edge rushers who can stop the run are more desirable. They're also far more expensive to add through free agency. Teams need to draft and develop them.

The Bills have been too thin at this position because of injuries, and their primary addition the previous offseason, Joey Bosa, was so bad against the run that he remains unsigned.

"I think he's got speed, but I think he's got power," Beane said of Parker. "He can use his arm. I think he's got a multitude of moves. I think there's more in there. I think we can continue to work on that. But if you just look at his athletic ability and you see it on tape, I think his ’24 film was very impressive. It really was. This year has not been as consistent. We'll talk about that. We'll look at that. ... But the flashes are really good of a three-down player that will stick his face in there and play the run but is athletically explosive enough to help you in the pass rush."

With another edge rusher added, inside linebacker seemed like the next prominent hole the Bills would fill on Day 2 of the draft. Five were taken in the second round before Beane decided to package his third- and sixth-round picks to select Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun.

If you found that selection puzzling, think back to the Bills' loss to the Broncos in the AFC playoffs. Maxwell Hairston, their first-round draft pick, could not face the Broncos because of an injury. Once Tre'Davious White went down in the fourth quarter, McDermott had to put practice-squad cornerback Dane Jackson in the game.

On his first defensive play of the game, Jackson allowed a 52-yard go-ahead touchdown pass. Offensive coordinators in the NFL are too smart, and quarterbacks are too good, for any defense to have cornerbacks on the field who aren't talented enough. The Bills' depth at the start of training camp last July looked strong, but it got hit hard with Hairston's first injury. Shortly after the season began, sixth-round rookie Dorian Strong suffered a neck injury that has put his career in jeopardy.

The boundary cornerback may have been their weakest spot on the depth chart entering the draft.

Ingbinosun was called for an FBS-worst 16 penalties in 2024. He is a tall (6-foot-2), athletic cornerback who excels in press coverage, but he needs to learn how not to use his hands while following a receiver in off coverage. Though Hairston and Christian Benford are the Bills' starters, history shows Leonhard will need four or five reliable boundary cornerbacks this season. Ingbinosun showed improvement as a senior in 2025, and he practiced each week against some of the best receivers in the country.

Last season, while facing top competition, Igbinosun allowed just 22 catches for 207 yards. He allowed a completion on 47.8% of the targets he faced. The Bills double-dipped at the position, selecting Missouri's Toriano Pride Jr. in the seventh round.

"If you look at the corners, those are premium positions," Beane said. "If you just look at who makes the top dollars in the league, and if you look at our season last year, and it's happened before, those guys are all going to play. They're going to play. It's a long season, and when you have corners that are not capable, they get bullseyes on them real fast, and especially when you are playing the prime time quarterbacks, the prime time offenses in this league."

The Bills focused on upside on Day 3. In the fifth round, for example, South Carolina defensive back Jalon Kilgore was available with the 167th pick because some NFL teams were unsure how to use him. The Bills plan to move Kilgore to safety because he hits hard and covers well. As the fifth round continued, Penn State defensive tackle Zane Durant fell to Buffalo. It wasn't necessarily a position Buffalo needed, but Durant's athleticism was too intriguing to pass up.

We should have expected an approach like this, especially on defense. Leonhard wants talented chess pieces who fit his scheme and possess different skill sets.

The confounding aspect of Day 2 was the decision not to select an inside linebacker, but Beane filled the hole Saturday with TCU's Kaleb Elarms-Orr. He is experienced (47 college games) and productive (19 tackles for loss). In 2025, he was a first-team All-Big 12 selection.

If the season were to start this week, the Bills' starters in their 3-4 defense could be: Ed Oliver, Deone Walker, T.J. Sanders, Rousseau, Chubb, Bernard, Williams, Benford, Hairston, Gardner-Johnson, and Cole Bishop. The top rotational players, whose usage could vary game to game, could be Parker, Michael Hoecht, Landon Jackson, Elarms-Orr, Javon Solomon, Ingbinosun, Kilgore, and Stone.

The roster-building does not stop with the draft, either. If there's a hole, perhaps at inside linebacker, the Bills will add a veteran free agent this spring. There wasn't a big-splash signing. Beane's efforts to trade for the Raiders' edge rusher Maxx Crosby didn't consummate in a deal, either. Instead, the Bills are counting on a young, innovative defensive coordinator to pull more out of the returning players and maximize the talent of their rookies.

One of Brady's mantras is to put the ball down and play. The Bills want to be the aggressor in each game. Time will tell whether the changes made on defense will finally lead Buffalo to another Super Bowl.