Ed Oliver, DT, Houston (Round 1, Pick 9)
Ed Oliver not only fills one of Buffalo’s biggest needs but is arguably the best player from this year’s draft. He has a quick jump off the snap, great hands, and an arsenal of moves on the line.
Oliver played the one-technique at Houston, lining up on the shoulder of the opposing center. This led many to believe he’s undersized at 6’1″ and a smidge under 300 lbs. However, Buffalo doesn’t intend to use him there.
The Houston DT was picked to replace career Bill, Kyle Williams. Like Oliver, Williams was on the smaller size for interior linemen. But, that wasn’t an issue. Williams didn’t play one-technique football, where a player is asked to take up space in the middle of the line. Instead, he played the three-technique, on the outside shoulder of the opposing guard.
Three-techs are often the most difficult to double-team, and therefore, are found most often in the backfield. That’s exactly how HC Sean McDermott intends to use him. “They used [Oliver] a little different than how we’ll use him,” said GM Brandon Beane. “Three-tech is an important piece to [McDermott’s] defense.”
While he didn’t participate in any speed/agility drills at the combine, Oliver ran an unofficial 4.71 40 at his Pro Day. This incredible speed for a DT allowed Oliver to lead the AAC in career tackles for loss, as well as rank fifteenth in career sacks. Moving him from one-tech to the three may create a slight disruption in Oliver’s rhythm, but that should be ironed out by Week 1.
The short: Oliver is a day one starter on all 32 teams, but he’ll be more than just a plug-and-play guy in Buffalo.
RATING: A+
Cody Ford, OL, Oklahoma (Round 2, Pick 38)
Buffalo decided that this would finally be the year they’d rebuild that atrocious offensive line. And, rebuild they did. They signed three free agents that are projected starters to bulk up their front and added Ford for even more depth.
While at Oklahoma, Ford played both left guard and right tackle. For a team where talent is sparse, versatility like that on the OL is crucial. He blocked for two first overall picks in Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray and helped the Sooners rush for the 11th most yards in CFB last year.
Draft expert Mel Kiper reported that Buffalo liked Ford enough to trade up for him at the end of the first round but couldn’t get one done. By the time the Raiders were on the clock, they couldn’t wait any longer. They shipped off their second (40th overall) and fifth (158th) to Oakland to select the run-blocking savant.
The only issue is that Buffalo slightly overpaid to move up just two spots. It cost them what became Trayvon Mullen and Michael Jackson, but perhaps it was justified. Two tackles were taken in the three picks prior to Ford’s selection, and tackle-deficient Tampa Bay was sitting at 39.
The short: Ford is going to play RT for the Bills, per Brandon Beane, a position which they filled with Ty Nsekhe in free agency. It’ll be interesting to see how they utilize him across the line.
GRADE: A-
Devin Singletary, RB, Florida Athletic (Round 3, Pick 74)
Singeltary is a great power back, but there was no need to pick him. Sure, Buffalo’s top two halfbacks are 31 and 35, but they have plenty of depth at the position. In fact, Singletary is one of nine RBs on the Bills roster. There are three locks for the 53-man in LeSean McCoy, Frank Gore, and TJ Yeldon. That leaves, at most, two spots to divide among Christian Wade, Keith Ford, Taiwan Jones, Marcus Murphy, Senorise Perry, and Singletary. No need to use a high-third on someone who might not even make the roster.
To add salt to the wound, Hakeem Butler, Kelvin Harmon, and Riley Ridley were still on the board when Buffalo’s pick rolled around, all of whom play WR, a major position of need despite their moves in free agency.
The short: Singletary is a solid player, but he is, by no means, the heir apparent to LeSean McCoy. The Bills are over saturated at RB, but he could turn into a reliable starter or valuable trade bait down the line.
GRADE: B-
Dawson Knox, TE, Ole Miss (Round 3, Pick 96)
Entering the third round, GM Brandon Beane had his mind set on a TE. Unfortunately, so did three other teams. Jacksonville, Green Bay, and Houston all selected their guys, leaving one more early round talent for the Bills to snag.
It cost the Bills two fifths, again losing value per the draft pick value chart. But, Beane got his guy: Brentwood Academy QB turned Ole Miss TE Dawson Knox.
Coming out of High School, Knox was a zero-star QB recruit with offers from Air Force, Austin Peay, and Cornell. He rejected all three and attended Ole Miss, where he made the team as a TE.
Despite only playing TE for two years (and not scoring a touchdown since his junior year in high school), Beane and McDermott both love what Knox brings to the table. He was a track star and dunk-contest champion in high school. He picked up one of the most physically demanding positions in what may be the most rigorous sport and became a Division I talent in just two years. “He’s a good athlete and tested well,” Beane said. “I do think he is a dual threat. I do think he’s got upside.” As I’ve described before, Buffalo is a home for grit-and-grind players, which Knox has proven to be.
Many were concerned by the lack of receiving touchdowns from Knox, but Beane put those worries to rest. “I didn’t feel that [Ole Miss] used him to accentuate some of the things he does well,” Beane said. He also played alongside two second-round receivers in AJ Brown and DK Metcalf, making it difficult to get red zone targets.
Knox is a pick based on his potential. He’s not a day one starter, maybe not even the second TE on the depth chart. However, Beane and McDermott love the intangibles he brings to the table.
The short: Knox wasn’t drafted for his skills. He was drafted for his work ethic and mental toughness. TE Coach Rob Boras was instrumental to the success of a young Greg Olsen, so there’s hope he can iron out Knox’s inefficiencies.
GRADE: C+
Vosean Joseph, OLB, Florida (Round 5, Pick 147)
After free agency, the biggest position of need for Buffalo was LB. They have three solid starters in Matt Milano, Tremaine Edmunds, and Lorenzo Alexander. Outside of that, the next best LB would be a scout teamer anywhere else.
After trading away their two fourth-round picks, the Bills had to pick a linebacker or blow their shot at a solid player. OLB Vosean Joseph was the selection. Last day selections are usually diamond in the rough picks, but analyst Chris Simms felt otherwise about Joseph. “This was… the third most impressive linebacker I watched,” Simms said. “He’s a lot like [Defensive Rookie of the Year] Darius Leonard… Every game… he’s all over the ball.”
Joseph is seen as a project coming out of the draft. He’s extremely explosive and possesses excellent downhill acceleration. The chief complaints are that his field vision is narrow, he pulls the trigger too early on play actions, and he plays sloppy in man coverage. One anonymous AFC coach said that “you can coach some ugly out of [Joseph’s] play.”
One notable comparison is between Joseph and now-teammate Tremaine Edmunds. Despite being on opposite ends of the size spectrum – Edmunds is the size of an NBA player while Joseph is small, even for a weak-side LB – both are/were freak athletes with many rough edges. Edmunds became arguably the third-best player on a top-10 defense, so it doesn’t seem unrealistic to expect similar results from Joseph.
The short: The aforementioned AFC coach also said that Joseph’s play is “either really impressive or really ugly.” Linebacker coach Bob Babich turned Brian Urlacher into a Hall of Famer. If he can replicate even half of what he did with Urlacher, the Bills will be in for a big surprise from their fifth rounder. Otherwise, it could be a rough couple of years for Joseph.
GRADE: C
Jaquan Johnson, S, Miami (Round 6, Pick 181)
Selecting Johnson was definitely a “best player available” pick. Between Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, Buffalo may have the best safety tandem in the NFL. The Bills have no need to replace either of them, so the pick came a little out of left field… especially considering the Bills still hadn’t drafted a WR.
By no means will Johnson be seeing any first team time, but he’ll definitely see rotation snaps, as, beyond Poyer and Hyde, there’s no one to compete for time. He may also see snaps as a part of dime or quarter packages and could be a big part of the special teams unit.
Why Johnson fell to Buffalo in the sixth round when he was a projected late-fourth is unknown, but he’s great value for where he was selected, even if he won’t see the field much. His knack for tracking a ball in the air led to eight interceptions during his time at Miami, a trait which will prove invaluable if the strong Buffalo defense can force opponents into passing downs.
The short: There was no need to draft a safety, but the Bills did get a respectable player. Johnson will be an important player, but there were better options.
GRADE: C
Darryl Johnson Jr, EDGE, North Carolina A&T (Round 7, Pick 225)
During his final year at NC A&T, Johnson dominated the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, leading in sacks and winning Defensive Player of the Year.
As already mentioned, day three picks are about finding players to develop into usable starters. With OLB Lorenzo Alexander hitting 35 and DE Jerry Hughes now entering his 30s, edge rushers will be a need in the coming years. Good foresight by Beane to prevent being stuck without players when the time comes.
The concern surrounding Johnson is his lack of competition. He played in a weak conference in the second-tier of college football, so don’t take his success as a player as an accurate projection of his NFL-readiness. However, that was also the stigma following Robert Mathis, and he did just fine.
The short: If Johnson can bring his high level of production to the NFL, then he’ll be an elite player for a long time. But, in the likely situation in which his FCS success doesn’t translate, Buffalo could very well chalk this one up as a wasted pick.
GRADE: C
Tommy Sweeney, TE, Boston College (Round 7, Pick 228)
With their final selection of the draft, Buffalo doubled up on tight ends. Sweeney excelled as a receiver at BC, averaging a ridiculous 12.7 yards per catch. That said, he massively under-performed as a blocker, especially at his size. Scouts noted that he doesn’t get low enough to hold off opponents and can’t recover well once off making contact.
This is an odd fit, seeing as that OC Brian Daboll doesn’t rely on his tight ends to make plays down the field. The Bills targeted their tight ends on pass plays under 20% of the time.
If Sweeney can’t make big steps as a blocking tight end, he probably won’t even make the 53-man roster.
The short: Sweeney was a good receiver in college, but he doesn’t fit Buffalo’s scheme whatsoever. He’s going to need to make improvements if he ever wants to suit up for the Bills.
GRADE: D+
How do you think the Bills did this draft? Let me know, either on Twitter (@zekepersources) or Instagram (@zekepersources)