Taking a look at cornerbacks, safeties who may be on Bills' radar in NFL draft
Finding a cornerback prospect who checks every box will be a scouting challenge for the Buffalo Bills in the 2025 NFL draft.
Finding a cornerback prospect who checks every box will be a scouting challenge for the Buffalo Bills in the 2025 NFL draft.
“If you could take a guy who's 6-foot-2, strong, 200-and-some pounds, he's got great ball skills and he runs 4.35, I'd put him in my pocket and take him home,” Bills general manager Brandon Beane said at the NFL scouting combine. “But that's usually not the case. And if they are, and you're drafting at 30, you're probably not getting them. So, we'll evaluate what they do well.”
The Bills have a big need at cornerback due to the fact starter Rasul Douglas is set to become a free agent and will be 31 next season. Primary backup Kaiir Elam has consistently underperformed, enters the last year of his contract and might be a bargain-bin trade candidate. Quality starter Christian Benford is entering the final year of his contract.
Even if the Bills sign a starting cornerback in free agency, they still could use more depth.
Thursday was interview day for defensive backs at the combine, and many players said they have met with or have meetings scheduled with the Bills. (Buffalo met with all the players at the Senior Bowl, as does every team).
The Bills like cornerbacks with length. A corner with an arm length of 32 inches or more is ideal. Former Bills first-round pick Tre’Davious White has 32⅛-inch arms. Arms 31 inches or better is very good. Benford’s measure 31 inches. Backup Ja’Marcus Ingram has 31⅝-inch arms.
Obviously, coverage skills are paramount, and it is expected that the Bills will target prospects with some ability to play man coverage this year.
Then, there’s toughness.
“In our defense, one of the things, you've got to tackle, you've got to be physical,” Beane said. “And not every defense accentuates that. You still have to cover. We do want to turn the ball over. So all of that plays into it.
“We've got to evaluate what the corners have starting in free agency, that happens first, and then this draft class,” Beane said. “And we'll line them up the way we see them.”
The good news for the Bills: The 2025 NFL Draft fits the team’s needs for help at both defensive tackle and defensive end.
Draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL Network has 16 defensive linemen in his top 50 prospects. The Bills are in a good position to add talent, whether its a prospective starter with a first-round pick or a key backup with a pick in the second or third rounds. Sports reporter Mark Gaughan sizes up the defensive line draft prospects.
Drafting a safety is a strong possibility, as well, since Damar Hamlin is set to become a free agent. Cole Bishop is poised to move into the starting lineup in his second season, but the Bills need a backup, at least.
“You're not going to see us probably play a lot of rookie safeties in this defense,” Beane acknowledged Tuesday.
That factors against using a prime pick on a safety. However, the Bills need some elite-level talent on defense, a couple players who could be considered top five or six at their position. That would be the argument for using the No. 30 pick (which the Bills own) on a freak athlete at safety.
Texas cornerback Jahdae Barron, celebrating a play against Arizona State, could be an attractive draft prospect for the Bills. Brynn Anderson, Associated Press
Here’s an overview of defensive back talent the Bills could be considering in the 2025 draft:
First-round talent
The top two cornerbacks – Colorado’s Travis Hunter and Michigan’s Will Johnson – are expected to be long gone before the Bills pick.ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. projected Texas corner Jahdae Barron to the Bills at No. 30 in his recent mock draft. Barron doesn’t have ideal length, but he has elite athleticism, instincts, toughness and intelligence. He plays great. In 2024, he had five interceptions, nine pass breakups and no TDs allowed.
Barron can play the slot, outside corner or safety. He played mostly in the slot in 2022 and 2023 (just 13% as outside corner those two years, according to Pro Football Focus). But in 2024, he played 70% as an outside corner. The Bills already have an elite slot corner in Taron Johnson.
“I’m most definitely comfortable playing outside, safety or in the slot,” Barron said Thursday, adding he met with the Bills in Indianapolis and “it went amazing.”
“I think he could survive outside if you needed him to,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “That's not going to be where his specialty is. But he’s somebody that is a sure tackler, that has instincts, that takes the football away, that's an outstanding blitzer. I look at the teams that are in the playoffs, and a lot of them have guys that can fill that role.”
At a press briefing in Indianapolis on Wednesday, the NFL announced that the league is gearing up to use Hawk-Eye virtual measurement to replace the chains as the primary measurement system for the regular season in 2025, per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.
Other first-round corner candidates are East Carolina’s Shavon Revel Jr., who is a long, supersized player at 6-1 with 32⅝-inch arms. He is tough against the run. One issue: He tore knee ligaments in September, which could impact his rookie productivity.
Another player in the 20-to-40 range of the draft is Florida State’s Azareye’h Thomas (pronounced uh-ZAR-ee-yay). He’s long, athletic, with great character and is only 20 years old. He majors in press-man coverage. He is not known as a great tackler, but he showed some improvement in 2024.
“I still feel like I can be a more consistent tackler,” Thomas acknowledged. “I feel I still have things to work on. But my will and my want-to to tackle can never be questioned. That’s something I take pride in, and the things that need to get fixed will be fixed.”
Two safeties could land late in the first round – Georgia’s Malaki Starks and South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori. The latter is one of the most freak athletes in the draft and is built like a linebacker. He’s probably better as a chess piece near the line of scrimmage. He’s expected to blow up the testing drills in Indianapolis. Both said they met with the Bills.
Day two or mid-round prospects
Cornerbacks Maxwell Hairston of Kentucky and Benjamin Morrison of Notre Dame are top-50 talents. But Hairston isn’t great vs. the run, and Morrison had a worrisome hip injury in October.Late-second or third-round prospects to monitor during the draft process include Louisville’s Quincy Riley (a ball hawk), Kansas State’s Jacob Parrish (probably solely a slot corner), big Nohl Williams of California, Ole Miss press-man corner Trey Amos (good instincts, but is he a good enough tackler?) and Iowa State’s Darien Porter (a fast, converted wide receiver with good character). Ohio State’s Denzel Burke is a four-year starter and a Day 2 player to watch, and he met with the Bills.
At safety, an impressive player to watch is Texas’ Andrew Mukuba, who had a big 2024 with five interceptions. He spent his first three seasons at Clemson and was the first true freshman to start a season opener for the Tigers in 2021, against Georgia. He may be fifth or sixth on the safety ranking. He said he met with the Bills.
Syracuse’s Justin Barron and Ohio State’s Lathan Ransom could be middle-round safeties with the kind of tackling ability and versatility the Bills covet.