4 – Trade partner
Armed with 10 picks at the outset, Brandon Beane felt he was equipped to maneuver around the board as opportunities presented themselves. The first opportunity came on day two when Buffalo moved 15 spots up the board from 56 to 41 to take South Carolina DT T.J. Sanders in a trade with the Chicago Bears.
The Bills gave up both of their second-round picks (56, 62) and one of their fourth-round selections (109) for pick 41, a third-round pick (72) and a seventh (240).
After taking DE Landon Jackson in round three to end their day two haul, Buffalo came back up the board and reclaimed pick 109 in round four on Saturday in a second trade with the Bears to select mammoth DT Deone Walker from Kentucky.
The two pick swaps with Chicago made the Bears a trade partner with Buffalo in four of their last eight trades over the last two offseasons counting their trade of G Ryan Bates to the Bears last spring.
Beane felt compelled to move up for both of his defensive tackle selections in this draft. He had a higher grade on both Sanders and Walker than where they sat on the board. And when it came to Walker specifically, Beane felt the defensive tackle’s back injury that compromised his production in 2024 also affected his draft stock.
“I had a very good grade on him before he ever played a game this year, based off his 2023 film,” said Beane. “His 2024 film was a little inconsistent. The more research you do, you find out he’s dealing with a back situation. This is a young, moldable player who is not anywhere near his ceiling. He’s a guy you want to get your hands on to see if you can grow and develop this guy. And I believe if he had come out a year ago, he would have been in the first round.”