The Bills' track record in one of the NFL's most crucial team-building phases is quietly powering sustained success around Josh Allen
The team-building process offers no shortage of opportunities to go about assembling a winning roster. There are a few key centerpieces that are common themes among the annual contenders, such as the quarterback and offensive line play — the Buffalo Bills and general manager Brandon Beane have that part of the blueprint down pat. From […]
The team-building process offers no shortage of opportunities to go about assembling a winning roster. There are a few key centerpieces that are common themes among the annual contenders, such as the quarterback and offensive line play — the Buffalo Bills and general manager Brandon Beane have that part of the blueprint down pat. From there? It can look different in a lot of ways.
Everyone knows the importance of hitting your first-round draft choices. But one other common theme for annual contenders is that they find surplus value later in the draft. The middle rounds should be considered the "money rounds" in the NFL Draft — especially given the rookie wage scale and how low the cost for players in that area of the draft can be. Get too deep into the draft order and you're essentially throwing darts. But in the middle rounds, talent is still plentiful. You just need to know how to attack it.
How have the Bills done in drafting through the middle rounds in recent years? Let's take a look back at Brandon Beane's last five draft classes with NFL tenure and explore how well he's landed talent in the heart of the draft with picks made in rounds three through five.
Grading The Buffalo Bills' Five-Year Draft History In The Middle Rounds (2020-2024)
Third-Round Draft Choices: DL DeWayne Carter (95th overall, 2024), LB Dorian Williams (91st overall, 2023), LB Terrel Bernard (89th overall, 2022), OT Spencer Brown (93rd overall, 2021), RB Zack Moss (86th overall, 2020)
The book is yet to be written on DeWayne Carter, who was drafted to be a disruptive piece of Buffalo's rotation on the defensive interior. He did get a 300+ snap sample size as a rookie but the team proceeded to invest heavily into the room anyway, signing Larry Ogunjobi to go with draft choices TJ Sanders and Deone Walker in 2025.
The rest of their third-round crop features two quality starters in Terrel Bernard and Spencer Brown, plus a breakout talent in Dorian Williams. The linebacker room is in good hands for the foreseeable future thanks to the third-round of recent draft classes in Buffalo.
There's only one established "miss" out of this group, as Zach Moss carried the ball 225 times in 31 career games in Buffalo before being traded to Indianapolis.
Fourth-Round Draft Choices: RB Ray Davis (128th overall, 2024), WR Gabe Davis (128th overall, 2020)
General manager Brandon Beane has generally regarded his fourth-round picks as ammunition to go get better players earlier in the draft. It shows. Just two fourth-round draft choices in five years is a pretty incredible commitment to the bit. So, too, is getting quality role players like these with the only two picks you've made. Two picks at No. 128 overall named Davis? Well played.
Ray Davis is an arrow-up pointing player who will be important to Buffalo's contingency plan with RB James Cook — who is hungry for a new deal. Gabe Davis has come and gone after playing his rookie contract in Buffalo. He was a productive secondary option in the passing game who left for "greener pastures" (read: big money elsewhere). He failed to live up to his new deal in Jacksonville but certainly was a productive selection as a fourth-rounder in Buffalo.
Fifth-Round Draft Choices: IOL Sedrick Van Pran-Granger (141st overall, 2024), LB Edefuan Ulofoshio (160th overall, 2024), EDGE Javon Solomon (168th overall, 2024), WR Justin Shorter (150th overall, 2023), WR Khalil Shakir (148th overall, 2022), OL Tommy Doyle (161st overall, 2021), QB Jake Fromm (167th overall, 2020)
Moving outside the top-125 picks, it becomes harder to consistently target contributors or players with developmental ceilings to buy into. Khalil Shakir shines brightly amongst this group, giving the Bills arguably their best current pass catcher. He's a pain to cover, runs great routes and is tough with the ball. He just happens to have a 3rd-percentile wingspan for wide receivers — which is why he was available later in the draft.
The rest of this group? As you'd expect, there's significant variance. There's names that are gone, but then also names like Javon Solomon are significant special teams contributors and rotational players based off his rookie season. Van Pran-Granger may be a key developmental piece if Connor McGovern prices himself out of Buffalo in a contract year this offseason.
Grading The Middle Rounds (2020-2024)
The Bills have drafted three quality starters in the middle rounds since 2020 with Brown, Bernard, and Shakir. Dorian Williams is projecting as at least a sufficient starter, plus Ray Davis looks like he could be a starter some day based off his rookie opportunities. Especially behind this offensive line. This exercise doesn't include sixth and seventh-round draft choices, but if it did Beane's resume would be even stronger. Cornerback Christian Benford is one of the best in football and was a sixth-round pick. Damar Hamlin has his limitations as a starter but is a fine option as a third safety and special teamer — he was drafted in the sixth-round in 2021. Kicker Tyler Bass was a sixth-rounder in 2020.
In all, Brandon Beane deserves an A- grade for his middle-rounds drafting. In a perfect world, the fifth-round would have at least one more known hit to show for all those swings. Perhaps it will come with this year's group. This all bodes well for names out of the 2025 class, such as Jackson Hawes, Jordan Hancock, Deone Walker, and Landon Jackson.
The Bills have been able to successfully target many mid-round players with specific plans and the ability to develop talent along the way. In all, this is a big part of why Buffalo has had success contending through transition around Josh Allen. Reinforcements in 2025 should keep that trend going, too.
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