Bills NFL Draft big board: Positions of need and who they could take
Wide receiver and edge rusher are among the most glaring areas that need improvement.
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As the NFL wraps up the 2024 season this weekend, most of the league, including the Bills, is already on to 2025. Plans are beginning to form as to the best ways to attack the offseason, and from a Bills perspective, it’s about finding the right pieces to finally help them push to the Super Bowl.
They certainly have some things working in their favor this offseason. The Bills can get themselves to plenty of cap space, don’t have many significant in-house free agents, and could hold 11 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft once the league hands out compensatory selections.
General manager Brandon Beane has an opportunity this offseason with all of those things working in the Bills’ favor, but the biggest piece of their long-term success is through the draft. And they have several areas they could address in April.
In no particular order, here is a look at a very early Bills 2025 draft big board with players to know in the first two rounds, and why specific positions would make sense for those picks based on the Bills roster outlook.
Wide receiver
Although the Bills offense routinely scored in the 30s, if there’s one thing that the AFC Championship Game revealed, it’s that the Bills lacked an intermediate to downfield threat that consistently pressed a defense. Separation was an issue at the position all season, particularly outside the numbers, and that held even after they acquired Amari Cooper in October. Khalil Shakir is an excellent slot receiver who likely fits into their long-term plan. While the Bills invested an early second-round pick in Keon Coleman last season, his late-season slide after his wrist injury was noteworthy, and his lack of separation skills doesn’t solve the existing problem. Curtis Samuel is a depth player above all else, and 2025 may be his last in Buffalo.
Even if they re-sign one of Cooper or Mack Hollins — Hollins seems more likely from a cost standpoint — the Bills have a distinct need for a player who can start at Z-receiver and separate in the intermediate to deep areas of the field. It’s something that Bills coach Sean McDermott highlighted in his season-ending news conference. Those traits should be atop the list of what the Bills are looking for this offseason at the position. At least at this early stage of the draft calendar, many of the top receiver draft prospects fit those requirements. The need is so vital that the Bills could address it with one of their top picks or even through free agency or the trade market.
Edge rusher
The Bills have taken a few years off from using significant draft resources to address the position, but the need has returned with a vengeance in 2025. The team relies so much on the success of their pass-rushing front four, and outside of 2021 first-round pick Greg Rousseau, the Bills were left wanting more from their defensive ends. Despite the high ceiling, even Rousseau’s season had a certain inconsistent quality. Regardless, he was their best at the position by a large margin. A.J. Epenesa was an every-week starter, though when the defense forced an obvious passing situation, they would take Epenesa off the field on third downs. Epenesa held a pressure rate of only 5.8 percent last season. According to TruMedia, among defensive linemen and linebackers who had at least 100 pass-rushing snaps in 2024, Epenesa ranked 168th out of 186 qualifying players, and the majority of the players he was ahead of were interior run-stuffing defensive tackles. Von Miller is nothing more than a rotational player if the Bills keep him, Dawuane Smoot is a free agent, and 2024 fifth-round pick Javon Solomon is nowhere close to being a relied-upon asset on defense.
The Bills still have four players under contract, but their top two of Rousseau and Epenesa have expiring contracts after the 2025 season. Even if they were to re-sign Rousseau to a long-term deal, which is a complex decision in itself, they need a long-term running mate for him. And with Rousseau’s best pass-rushing position being on the defensive left side, investing in a player that can be more impactful from the defensive right side would be a nice plus. The need for a future at the position is stark and there is likely an addition coming this offseason. As far as traits are concerned, they have moved away from height and weight prototypes as the years have passed, but one constant is longer arm length. The Bills will be on the lookout for a potential game-wrecker along the defensive line or someone with a high-ceiling potential to become that, as the defensive roster currently lacks that high-end player.
One-technique defensive tackle
The Bills have spent ample draft resources on the three-technique role of their defensive tackle room, spending a top ten pick on Ed Oliver and a third-round pick in 2024 on DeWayne Carter, so they are well-stocked there. However, they haven’t used a draft pick on the one-technique role — more of an early-down run-defending piece — since Beane took Harrison Phillips in the third round in 2018. After Phillips left in 2022 for free agency, they signed DaQuan Jones to fill the void, and Jones was very good when healthy over his first two seasons. In 2024, Jones took a minor step back in his role and production. He was replaced on third downs in almost every passing situation this season. The Bills are likely financially committed to Jones on the roster as he enters his age-33 season, but there is a good chance this is his last with the Bills.
That means a long-term plan seems prudent to identify, and with so much of their core due for free agency in 2026, finding a two-down run stuffer in the 2025 NFL Draft makes a lot of sense. The Bills have generally stayed away from the prototypical heavy run-stuffing nose tackle type since McDermott and Beane arrived, instead favoring versatility. However, given some of the shift across the NFL to focus more on running the ball, it may call for the Bills to combat the trend with a bigger-bodied one-technique. Or, they could stick with a similar versatility and draft someone rooted as a one-technique but who can also play three-technique on some snaps. Regardless of their approach, there are several options throughout the first few rounds the Bills could target.
Cornerback
In 2024, the Bills saw Christian Benford begin to reach his ceiling potential as their clear-cut No. 1 boundary cornerback, still with some room to grow. In the final year of his rookie contract in 2025, Benford should be a clear priority for investment in a long-term deal as he’s closer to the league’s elite at his position than any of the other rookie deal extension candidates. However, with that type of investment, the ideal scenario would be to counteract that cap hit with a cost-controlled starter on the opposite side. That, on top of the state of the position, makes cornerback a screaming offseason need that must be addressed in some way.
Rasul Douglas was a great fit in the Bills locker room and is extremely close with Benford, but he’s a free agent who will enter his age-31 season in 2025. Perhaps a one-year pact makes some sense to get the Bills to their next long-term starter with Benford, though Douglas’ production last season took a downturn from what it was in 2023. Their only in-house options under contract are 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam and special teams player Ja’Marcus Ingram. Elam struggled the vast majority of the time they put him on the field for Benford or Douglas, and Elam was a pressure point for the Chiefs to attack in the AFC Championship Game. If they don’t re-sign Douglas or bring in another short-term free agent, cornerback is a humongous draft need. If they do, cornerback remains a significant draft need for both depth and finding a future starting option for 2026 at the latest.
Potential later in the draft needs
Safety — The Bills selected Cole Bishop in the second round last year which was, by far, their heaviest draft investment at the position. With Damar Hamlin due to be a free agent, Bishop likely slots into a starting role next year. The Bills also have Taylor Rapp still under contract, and after a slow start to 2024, he became an average to slightly above-average contributor down the stretch of the season. Rapp is signed through 2026. Without a starter needed for the next two seasons, finding a Day 3 safety for development who can help on special teams is a logical step. Then, in 2027, they can see what they have at the position.
Pass-catching RB — Ty Johnson could be back in 2025, but as of now, he is due to become an unrestricted free agent. It’s a relatively weak running back class on the open market, which could yield a higher-than-expected contract for Johnson that the Bills wouldn’t be in a position to match. Should he leave, the Bills may feel like they can plug Ray Davis into that role, but they didn’t give any indication of it during the 2024 season. A pass-catching running back in a strong draft class on a cost-controlled deal could be a target on Day 3.
Middle linebacker — Terrel Bernard is in the final year of his rookie contract in 2025, and so is his top backup Baylon Spector. The Bills do have Joe Andreessen on the roster, though he’s viewed more as a special teams asset. A Day 3 middle linebacker would make some sense to begin developing this year.
Guard — The Bills have both starters, O’Cyrus Torrence and David Edwards, under contract in 2025. They also will likely have Alec Anderson (exclusive rights free agent) under roster control for two more years. But with Edwards due to become a free agent in 2026, it might be worth a Day 3 selection to begin developing someone should Edwards leave in a year.
Tackle — The Bills liked what they saw out of 2024 sixth-round pick Tylan Grable last year, so this wouldn’t be a move to replace him. If the Bills don’t draft a guard, they could look to draft someone to take Ryan Van Demark’s place on the roster, and hope the rookie has some down-the-line starting potential at left tackle.
Nickel corner — Taron Johnson and Cam Lewis remain under contract for 2025, but Lewis is a free agent after this year, and the Bills could have a roster spot open for a young nickel corner to develop behind Johnson. Granted, this might be one year too soon for this long-term idea, but the Bills have a lot of draft picks to play with this year.