![\"ESPN's](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/kayden-mcdonald-e1775569800165.jpg\")
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ESPN’s Peter Schrager dropped his NFL mock draft today and penciled in a defensive stud for the Bills.<\/p>\n
With just a little over two weeks until the Buffalo Bills<\/a> are on the clock in the first round of the NFL draft, there\u2019s a strong possibility they\u2019ll be eyeing a defensive player.<\/p>\n Buffalo has the flexibility to choose any position it wants in the first round of the draft, but selecting a defensive tackle could be the smartest move.<\/p>\n Bills Could Look to Add Kayden McDonald<\/p>\n If the Bills are considering taking a defensive tackle with their 26th pick, there\u2019s a solid chance they could land Kayden McDonald from Ohio State. Additionally, Justin DiLoro from Bills Wire suggested that this could<\/a> be a smart move.<\/p>\n \u201cIt makes sense why many prognosticators have linked the Bills with a defensive tackle in the first round of their mock drafts,\u201d DiLoro wrote on Wednesday. \u201cOhio State\u2019s Kayden McDonald has been a popular name whom the Bills could select if the team decides to bolster their defensive line.\u201d<\/p>\n McDonald played three seasons with the Buckeyes, appearing in 34 games. He was a notable player in 2024, and last season, he was promoted to starter and didn\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n Pro Football Focus ranked McDonald as the eighth-best defensive tackle out of 887 last season, highlighting his standout performance in run defense, where he claimed the top spot. However, he struggled in pass rush, finishing 432nd. If the Bills decide to draft him, he could excel at stopping the run in his debut season.<\/p>\n Many Scouts and Draft Analysts Love McDonald<\/p>\n Many draft analysts are high on McDonald, and The Athletic\u2019s Dane Brugler published his draft<\/a> guide, \u201cThe Beast,\u201d on Wednesday. In it, Brugler ranked McDonald as the No. 32 player overall and the No. 1 among defensive tackles.<\/p>\n \u201cA one-year starter at Ohio State, McDonald lined up as the nose guard in defensive coordinator Matt Patricia\u2019s versatile front. After handling a backup role as a sophomore, he became a starter in 2025, as the Buckeyes had to replace all four starters from their 2024 national title-winning defensive line,\u201d Brugler wrote. \u201cMcDonald emerged as an All-American and was the most dominant defensive player on several of Ohio State\u2019s 2025 tapes, which says a lot considering the defense\u2019s talent.<\/p>\n \u201cMcDonald\u2019s powerful skill set is at its best when he acts as a run defender. He resets the line of scrimmage with his initial burst and power, attacking and shucking blocks from a leveraged position. He plays games of peek-a-boo (and often wins) with ball carriers willing to test A-gap run lanes, and his awareness allows him to fill up the stat sheet with line-of-scrimmage stops. However, he had just 695 career snaps (32 defensive snaps per game in 2025), and his inexperience will be more noticeable against NFL blockers.\u201d<\/p>\n The Bills face a significant decision with their first-round pick. They need to weigh the value of adding a player like McDonald against the option of addressing a different defensive position or even a wide receiver.<\/p>\n If Buffalo isn\u2019t thrilled with any of the defensive players available when it\u2019s the Bills\u2019 turn to pick, there\u2019s a strong chance they could select a wide receiver to provide Josh Allen<\/a> with another target.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tDanny Fisher<\/a> Is a football journalist covering the Buffalo Bills for Heavy.com. He has covered the NFL for Gridiron Heroics, focusing on the AFC and Penn State football for Nittany Central. More about Danny Fisher<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Bills\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty ESPN’s Peter Schrager dropped his NFL mock draft today and penciled in a defensive stud for the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":861425,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2048],"tags":[215,214,53,2086,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-861424","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-buffalo-bills","8":"tag-bills","9":"tag-buffalo","10":"tag-buffalo-bills","11":"tag-buffalobills","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116370657072918358","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861424","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=861424"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861424\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/861425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=861424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=861424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=861424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}