Insider reveals the player the Buffalo Bills had their eye on that didn't fall to them at No. 30 in the 2025 NFL Draft
The Buffalo Bills selected Kentucky Wildcats cornerback Max Hairston with the No. 30 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft. Buffalo seems to be thrilled with the selection of Hairston. And all indications, so far, is that selecting Hairston was a great decision by the Bills. However, if not for the Atlanta Falcons trading back […]
The Buffalo Bills selected Kentucky Wildcats cornerback Max Hairston with the No. 30 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Buffalo seems to be thrilled with the selection of Hairston. And all indications, so far, is that selecting Hairston was a great decision by the Bills.
However, if not for the Atlanta Falcons trading back into the first round on Thursday night, it's possible that the Bills would've gone in another direction.
According to VolQuest's Brent Hubbs, the Bills had their eye on former Tennessee Vols edge rusher James Pearce.
Atlanta selected Pearce at No. 26 overall after making a (expensive) deal with the Los Angeles Rams to trade back into the first round.
"James was not going to get out of the first round," said Hubbs during an appearance on 104.5 The Zone's Ramon, Kayla, and Will. "I think that the Bills really liked him. I think there's a chance the Bills would've taken him. I think Buffalo was going to take whoever they had as the best defender on the board, because they were going defense. They ended up going (with) a cornerback. I don't think they were locked into (taking) a cornerback. I think they wanted the best defensive player, the most impactful guy. I think they liked James Peace a lot. He went up there for a top 30 visit."
There were some pre-draft character concerns about Pearce, which is why he slid to near the end of the first round despite being viewed by many analysts as a top 10 talent.
If the Bills' interest in Pearce was well-known, which it likely was considering the comments from Hubbs, then that's likely why the Falcons traded back into the first round ahead of the Bills.
Would Buffalo had selected Pearce over Hairston had he been available? We'll likely never know the true answer to that question, but it seems clear that the Bills were a fan of the former Vol.
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