Buffalo Bills select 'mountain of a man' in the first round of latest 2025 NFL Mock Draft
It's never too early to start looking ahead to 2025 NFL mock drafts, and my colleagues are already busy putting them together. For the Buffalo Bills, it's starting to look more and more like they'll be in a position to simply draft the best value available.In this latest mock, the Bills select defensive tackle Deone […]
It's never too early to start looking ahead to 2025 NFL mock drafts, and my colleagues are already busy putting them together. For the Buffalo Bills, it's starting to look more and more like they'll be in a position to simply draft the best value available.
In this latest mock, the Bills select defensive tackle Deone Walker out of Kentucky. Let's discuss.
First and foremost, why would the Bills select a defensive lineman? It's simple – DaQuan Jones is currently under contract for only one more year, and will be 35 years old when he heads to free agency.
Ed Oliver is under contract through 2027, and rookie DeWayne Carter is looking like a great selection, but you can never have too many disruptive defensive linemen. In today's NFL, and especially in Sean McDermott's defense, he always wants big guys up front that can rotate in. So, let's talk about Walker. My coworker Ian Valentino had this to say about him:
"Walker is a mountain of a man at 6'6", 345 pounds, and the idea of pairing him with Ed Oliver should excite Sean McDermott. The Bills need more youthful explosiveness, and Walker is a rare athlete who can play multiple positions effectively."
Ian hits it on the head — Walker is a huge, athletic freak up front, who could even stand to lose a little bit of bad weight. He's hyper athletic, and has insane size for the position, but the production hasn't quite been there this season.
His 9.9% pass rush win rate is 39th amongst qualified defensive tackles this season, but he has proven to be a steady tackler with only an 8.0% missed tackle rate. Walker draws a serious crowd, often seeing double teams. When it goes well for Walker, the burst and short-area athleticism for someone of his size is absurd, but the consistency needs to be better.
We know Brandon Beane likes a project. At 28th overall, for me personally, this feels too rich for Walker. I would much rather see Oregon's defensive tackle standout Derrick Harmon with this pick, who has proven to be substantially more effective this season, if Buffalo is going with a defensive tackle in the first round.
Follow along all season for all the latest Buffalo Bills news. You can also find me on X @JonHelmkamp.
