Buffalo Rumblings
Ultimately, the Bills need to add bona fide play maker with their top pick
After tonight, we can put all the guessing about Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft in the rearview mirror. The Buffalo Bills remain at pick No. 28 heading into this evening’s event, with plenty rumors swirling about the team’s interest in trading up.
That should be of no surprise to Bills Mafia — we all know how general manager Brandon Beane prefers to operate. He loves to rid his angst by trading up for the player he so desires. But there are plenty of teams who would like to trade up for players they like.
Trades are difficult to predict because you truly never know where a team may move across the board — or if it’s going to happen until it does. Of course, the Bills could make a wild trade into the top 10 to land one of the marquee receivers in this draft class, but you’d also need a team willing to move down a large amount of picks to make it work.
So, with that said, we’ll stick and pick for the sake of this exercise, while keeping in mind a move around the board remains a very real possibility later tonight. There are plenty of directions to go at pick 28. Nonetheless, we’ll do out best to predict what we think the Buffalo Bills will do on Thursday night.
The value is too good to pass on DeJean at this spot. There’s an odd feeling to DeJean right before the draft with plenty of question marks about where he’s going to be picked. But the prevailing thought seems to believe he’s bound for the latter half of Round 1 and could go anywhere from 16-32. To me, DeJean is a potential blue-chip player who offers a skill set not many can bring at pick No. 28. He possesses true game-changing ability as a secondary player wherever he plays (safety or corner) and a dynamite special teams ace — a rarity in the first round.
DeJean offers elite football skills, he’s a highly proficient tackler, and he’s an explosive vertical athlete with legitimate long speed. His football IQ is proven by the multitude of spots he’s played in college at a high level.
A lot of folks might be infuriated that this pick isn’t a receiver, but the Bills aren’t in a good spot in Round 1 here to necessarily capitalize on that move. If Brian Thomas Jr. mysteriously falls — then, sure, you probably run the card in. But the realistic possibility of that happening is slim.
I could see the Bills falling in love with Cooper DeJean while not committing themselves to a world that pigeon-holes them into one spot... like receiver. This team needs young players with bona fide potential and DeJean certainly has that, in my...
