By CHUCK POLLOCK, Wellsville Sun Senior Sports Columnist
Remember when Buffalo had no third- or seventh-round picks in this year’s NFL Draft?
That was Thursday … it all changed a day later.
Having addressed one need a night earlier when taking Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston with the 30th pick in the first round, come Friday night, the Bills’ attention turned to the defensive line. It’s a short-handed unit via the careless signing of edge rusher Michael Hoecht (Rams) and tackle Larry Okunjobi (Steelers), both of whom face six-game suspensions for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug (PED) statute.
General manager Brandon Beane won’t admit both were his mistake — his spin is that he already knew about Hoecht’s penalty before the signing, but clearly losing two key members of the defensive front for over a third of the season, helped force the trade which totally changed Buffalo’s third day of the draft.
Beane engineered a deal with the Bears that bought Buffalo a third- and seventh-round draft pick and moved it up 15 selections to grab the player they wanted.
The Bills sent both their second-round picks (56 and 62) and a fourth-rounder (109) to Chicago for the Bears second-rounder at 41, a third round pick (No. 72) and a seventh rounder (240).
Buffalo used the selection at 41 to choose 6-foot-4, 285-pound defensive tackle T.J. Sanders from South Carolina and with the third-round selection at No. 72 they took 6-foot-5, 270-pound edge rusher Landon Jackson from Arkansas.
The Bills came into the draft with 10 picks knowing full well that all of them would not make the roster. After Friday’s trade, they still have 10, and seven will come today, a fourth rounder (132), three fifth round choices (169, 170, 173), two sixth rounders (177, 206) and a seventh round selection (240).
LINDY’S Draft Guide assessed Sanders this way:
Overview: His decision to enter the draft (as a junior) projects to be a good one as he appears to be a safe Top 50 pick (he was taken at 41).
Strengths: Good burst gets him through gaps on passing downs. Often needs a double team to defend on passing downs. Willing to be patient and read things as a run defender rather than play reckless. Uses leverage effectively to manipulate blocks. Excellent pursuit player who can run down quarterbacks.
Weaknesses: Underweight for a typical NFL tackle. Will need some time to adjust to the power and strength of NFL linemen. Tackling strength average at best. Had a little trouble against bulky interior players later in the season.
Pro assessment: It would be a surprise if Sanders wasn’t an early contributor and eventual starting-caliber player.
OF JACKSON Lindy’s assessed:
Overview: Had he come out last year, he likely would have been a second-rounder. While he failed to elevate into a firm first-round pick his final season, he proved himself worthy of a Top-50 pick (he was taken 72nd).
Strengths: Force of nature against tight ends and smaller offensive tackles. Dominant power rusher. Sturdy when setting the edge and can hold his own against double teams.
Weaknesses: Height can work against him. Will be shut down by highly-technical or athletic opposition. Inefficient on running stunts. Reliance on length and strength will likely limit his production as a pro.
Pro assessment: Jackson should face a development arc that should see him starting by his second year and thriving by his third.
IF YOU’RE wondering about the Bills’ urgency in picking two defensive linemen in the first 72 selections, ponder this.
In the first three rounds, there were 102 picks and 15 of them were edge rushers and 12 were tackles or 27% of the draft selections in the draft’s opening rounds were defensive linemen, including one each by the Bills.
(Chuck Pollock, a Wellsville Sun and Olean Star senior sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@wnynet.net.)
Read more from Chuck:
• A look at the Bills’ first pick in the 2025 draft
• Bills need a cornerback, but they don’t need to pick one in the first round
• Part 1, a look at the 2025 NFL draft for the Bills
• The Bills have plenty of holes to fill in draft
• Catching up with Hornell’s Gene Mastin and the years before three-straight state football titles
• Mark Schmidt and St. Bonaventure Bonnies men’s basketball team looking at a rebuild
• Good news, bad news on high school hoops; thoughts on George Foreman
• Why the Bona NIT loss took place
• An embarrassing week for Beane who was perfect in free agency
• An interesting look at St. Bonaventure’s A-10 matchups
• St. Bonaventure joins $2.8 million settlement to get past and current student-athletes paid
• St. Joe’s is looming as a big test for the Bonnies
• A critical stretch for St. Bonaventure basketball
• Part II: McDermott is building a team to win the Super Bowl, not beat the Chiefs
• It was a different McDermott this season
• A look back at the ‘Super’ Bowl
• Pollock prediction on the Super Bowl and his annual quiz
• Part 2: What does Brandon Beane have to do to make the Buffalo Bills better?
• Part 1: Buffalo Bills’ GM Brandon Beane discusses 2024 season
Don Scholla, the passing of an Icon
• A huge win over Dayton for the Bonnies
• The Chiefs still have the Bills’ number
• Pollock Prediction: Chiefs 28, Bills 25 (actual score 32-29)
• Allen and the Bills heading to the AFC Championship game
• Josh Allen wants to hear Mr. Brightside against the Ravens
• Win over Richmond gets St. Bonaventure Bonnies ready for A-10 matchup with Duquesne
• Offensive line of the Buffalo Bills knocked out the Broncos
• Pollock Prediction: Broncos loom as a threat but the Bills will win
• McDermott knew the Bills would host the Broncos
• The Bills are waiting to see who they play
• Where the St. Bonaventure victory over VCU ranks in program history
• Josh Allen showed why he should be the NFL MVP
• Pollock Prediction: Bills will beat Jets in a must-win game for playoff seeding
• What happened during those six lost days
• Bills didn’t play with a sense of urgency against the Patriots
• Bills passed a big test against the Lions
• The media missed the point with questions of McDermott
• We did not expect the Rams-Bills results as Josh Allen sets major records
• Will the Bills be motivated against the Rams?
• Schmidt doesn’t want the Bonnies to get caught up in 12-1 talk
• A look at the rise under Sean McDermott
• The snow and the Buffalo Bills were too much for the 49ers
• St. Bonaventure Bonnies put unbeaten hoops record on the line in ESPN Tournament
• Pollock Prediction on San Fran at Buffalo Sunday night game
• A look at Terry Pegula’s beginnings in Olean and his competitive drive to win
• A look at McDermott’s smart play-calling and why aren’t we talking more about James Cook?
• Can the Bills do this to the Chiefs in the playoffs? Josh Allen touchdown run seals victory
• Pollock predicts a one-point Kansas City victory
• What happened to this being a rebuilding season for the Buffalo Bills?
• A dominating performance by the Bills
• Pollock predicts a Bills victory over the Colts on the road
• Thoughts on the 61-yard Bass field goal and where the Bills sit
• Solid win to open the season for the Bonnies
• Bass vindicated by 61-yard field goal to beat the Dolphins
• Bills don’t own the Dolphins but have an option to buy; prediction 27-20 (final was 30-27)
• The season is here for St. Bonaventure basketball
• St. Bonaventure speaks out, “We got Woj”
• Mark Schmidt on the NIL deals and the Bona NIT mess
• Pollock on the passing of St. Bonaventure legend Paul Hoffman
• Pollock on listening to the radio and the days of Willie Mays
• Houghton’s Phil Stockin gets Cazzie Russell to the Castle in Olean and then a title for the Knicks?
• The right hire for St. Bonaventure to lead the athletic department
• The inside story on why WPIG left the Bonnies after 74 years and a Gary Nease update
• Bill Walton was must-see basketball when he played in Buffalo for the Braves
