ORCHARD PARK – Having checked a vital box in the first round of the NFL Draft by selecting cornerback Max Hairston, the Buffalo Bills can attack a couple different positions with two second-round picks Friday.
The Bills own the 56th and 62nd picks, and there are several ways they can go including defensive tackle, edge rusher, wide receiver and maybe even safety.
Buffalo Bills draft targets, Day 2 of the NFL Draft: Defensive tackle
As you look at the depth chart, defensive tackle is the clear priority. With DaQuan Jones in the final year of his contract, and free agent signee Larry Ogunjobi suspended for the first six games of the season, the Bills have a hole in the middle of their line.
There was a run at the position in the middle of the first round and overall, five tackles went Thursday.
NFL DRAFT HUB: Live NFL Draft news, live picks, grades, analysis and more.
Among the players who could be good fits for Buffalo in the second round are:
- Joshua Farmer of Florida State
- Alfred Collins of Texas
- TJ Sanders of South Carolina
- Darius Alexander of Toledo
Collins is the biggest of that bunch at 332 pounds while the other three all weighed in at 305 pounds.
Buffalo Bills draft targets, Day 2 of the NFL Draft: Edge rusher
Edge rusher is a spot the Bills may want to upgrade because free agent signee Joey Bosa is a health risk, free agent signee Michael Hoecht, like Ogunjobi, has to sit out the first six games due to a suspension, and AJ Epenesa is an average player who probably gets more snaps than he should.
There was a slight surprise in the first round when Boston College’s Donovan Ezeiruaku was not selected, but he is likely to go early on Friday so he may not be an option for the Bills.
Marshall’s Mike Green was also expected to be a first-rounder, but the Marshall end who led the nation in sacks last year with 17 did have some off-field concerns and that might have been enough to scare teams off, at least in the first round. At 251 pounds, he’s similar in size to Javon Solomon, Buffalo’s fifth-round pick in 2024 who led the nation in sacks playing for Troy in 2023.
More likely to be available in Buffalo’s range are:
- Landon Jackson of Arkansas
- Jordan Burch of Oregon
- Nic Scourton of Texas A&M
Buffalo Bills draft targets, Day 2 of the NFL Draft: Wide receiver
Wide receiver now feels like a spot the Bills may wait on until Day 3, but it’s still possible that Beane looks to add someone Friday.
The threesome of Iowa State‘s Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, and Utah State’s Jalen Royals may be there, while Mississippi’s Tre Harris seems like a candidate to go in the first 10 picks of the round.
Jack Bech of TCU is an intriguing player as he caught 62 passes for 1,034 yards and nine TDs last season, then was named offensive MVP of the Senior Bowl where he also crushed the practices.
Buffalo Bills draft targets, Day 2 of the NFL Draft: Safety
And then there’s safety. Another first-round projection slid out of that round Thursday, South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori, but it seems like he’ll be gone early in the second round so the Bills might be out of reach.
Notre Dame’s Xavier Watts was widely considered the third-best safety in this class behind Emmanwori and Georgia’s Malaki Starks who went to the Ravens at No. 27.
If the Bills can somehow find a way to trade into the third round, Billy Bowman of Oklahoma, Andrew Mukuba of Texas and Jonas Sanker of Virginia are projected in that round.
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for four decades including 35 years as the full-time beat writer for the D&C, he has written numerous books about the history of the team, and he is also co-host of the BLEAV in Bills podcast/YouTube show. He can be reached at [email protected], and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social. Sign up for his Bills Blast newsletter here: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast
