The Buffalo Bills had quite a bit of change this offseason in terms of players leaving, players being added, and of course the coaching change. 

One point of emphasis to attack this offseason was getting QB Josh Allen more help. Plan and simple, the Bills have not done a good enough job in getting Allen high-level pass catchers. Bills GM Brandon Beane was aggressive in doing so this offseason and they traded a key asset to make it happen. 

ESPN is not high on the DJ Moore trade by the Buffalo Bills 

Back in March, the Bills reunited head coach Joe Brady with one of his former playmakers when they acquired DJ Moore from the Chicago Bears. Buffalo paid up a second-round pick to get Moore and a fifth-round pick. It was a steep price for a player whose production had declined each of the last couple of years in Chicago despite playing 17-game seasons.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell has labeled it the worst move of the offseason by Buffalo, while calling resigning C Connor McGovern their best. Part of the issue with adding the 29-year-old Moore is that he’s making $27.5 million a season on average until he’s a free agent in 2030. 

“The Bills are spending $59.5 million in cash on wide receivers this year, the seventh-highest total in the league,” Barnwell wrote. “That ranking will rise to fifth once A.J. Brown and Brandon Aiyuk move on later this offseason. Four of the organizations ahead of them are teams with superstar wideouts (Seahawks, Eagles, Bengals, and Cowboys).”

The other one is the Titans, who used a top-five pick on a potential WR1 in Carnell Tate. The Bills are committing plenty of cash to finding Josh Allen playmakers, but I still don’t think they have a player whom Allen can rely upon in a key spot — and they haven’t since Stefon Diggs left town.”

Bills need DJ Moore to be a WR1 in Buffalo to reach their max potential 

Buffalo lacks a clear WR1 on offense still and their trio of Khalil Shakir, Joshua Palmer, and Moore comes off as all secondary options. For Buffalo to be at its best, they need Moore to regain the form from 2023 when he had 1,364 receiving yards with eight touchdowns. Moore doesn’t need to up those numbers necessarily, but he has to be better than the 682 yards he put up in 2025. 

A second-round pick to go along with the money Moore is making puts pressure on Buffalo to get the most out of him. If Buffalo can integrate Moore into their second biggest offensive playmaker behind RB James Cook, they’re in a good spot. If not, it’s hard to say Barnwell is wrong with saying it was a bad move. 

It all comes down to the Bills surrounding their alien quarterback with the best possible support cast to compete to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. They took a big swing to do so, but it may end up as a wild overpay in the end.