The Buffalo Bills gave fans a long opening night at last year’s NFL draft, trading back twice and not making their first pick until the second day rolled around.
An insider believes the Bills could pull a similar move this year, moving out of the first round closing out Day 2 with an addition to the secondary and a potential replacement for Von Miller.
Bills Expected to Trade Up for Landon Jackson
Syracuse.com reporter Matt Parrino believes Bills general manager Brandon Beane will be busy on draft night, trading back twice from the team’s No. 30 overall pick to get extra third- and fifth-round picks. He predicted the Bills would take Ole Miss cornerback Trey Amos with the No. 37 overall pick and then select Arkansas edge rusher Landon Jackson with the No. 47 pick.
Parrino predicted that Jackson could take on a big role after some major changes to the team’s pass rushing group. The Bills released veteran Von Miller in a cost-cutting move and unexpectedly lost two new additions for a long stretch.
‘The Bills are dealing with a serious problem on their defensive line, as edge rusher Michael Hoecht and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi face six-game suspensions to start the 2025 season,” Parrino wrote. “Buffalo signed veteran pass rusher Joey Bosa, but his health and availability are concerns, especially if he’s asked to play a significant role for five straight months.”
Jackson could be a strong addition to Buffalo’s edge rushing group, Parrino added.
“The Arkansas prospect is massive at 6-foot-6, 264 pounds and plays the game with aggression,” he wrote. “He uses his size to his advantage, and his quickness and explosive pass-rush ability were on display at the Senior Bowl earlier this offseason.”
Miller struggled after returning from a torn ACL in 2023, but bounced back last season with 6.5 total sacks.
The Bills have not been shy about trading both up and down in the first round. Before last year’s move down the draft board, the team traded up in 2023 for tight end Dalton Kincaid and 2022 for cornerback Kaiir Elam. The team has plenty of capital to move up this season, holding two second-round picks and 10 picks in total.
Bills Show Interest in Other Pass Rushers
Many analysts join Parrino in suggesting the Bills will address their pass rush early, and the team spent time meeting with some of the draft’s top prospects. Reporter Justin Siejak of 4 News Buffalo reported that the team met with UCLA edge rusher Femi Oladejo, who is expected to land somewhere on Day 2.
“Oladejo is a freaky strong pass-rushing prospect with the potential to be a disruptor. However, he is raw,” Siejak wrote in a post on X. “He’s new to EDGE as he’s a former off-ball LB.”
NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein noted that Olajedo made a position change at UCLA, moving from off-ball linebacker to edge rusher. The change is expected to boost his draft profile, Zierlein wrote.
“Linebacker-turned-edge-rusher whose draft profile might have gone from dull to dynamic with the switch,” Zierlein wrote. “Oladejo is long and aggressive in attacking blockers in front of him.”
