Bills Central

NFL.com Draft Analysts Gives Bills Solid Grades For Each Day Of Draft

The Bills got a better grade each day as the draft progressed, a nod to their increasing volume of selection on days 2 and 3.

Chris Pirrone

Bills General Manager Brandon Beane keeps watch on the action on the field on the second day of the
Bills General Manager Brandon Beane keeps watch on the action on the field on the second day of the / Shawn Dowd / USA TODAY NETWORK

Chad Reuter posted his 2024 NFL Draft Grades for every team. Only a few teams received A's with the Chiefs, Steelers, Seahawks topping the expert's rankings.

The Bills got a better grade each day as the draft progressed, a nod to their increasing volume of selection on days 2 and 3:

  • Day 1 grade: B
  • Day 2 grade: A-
  • Day 3 grade: A


Reuter noted the Bills did not get much value for the trade backs out of Round 1, but that isn't accurate as the two first round trades allowed the Bills to pick up a third-round pick they did not have heading int the draft, plus they improved their fourth-round pick, and added a fifth-rounder.

Beane explained his strategy: “Listen, (The Chiefs) can move around. If we don’t trade with them, someone else can to get whatever player they’re targeting,” Beane said about the Chiefs trade. “To me, it’s got to make sense for us. Following our board, we could have taken leaps back, teams much further than that. We didn’t want to go crazy far, and honestly thought we would pick at 32, but then talked to my buddy (Panthers General Manager) Dan (Morgan) and gave us a chance to move up I think 59 slots, a six to a five.”

For an objective data driven evaluation, if we use the the trade chart developed by Rich Hill, the Bills-Chiefs trade was break even, and the Carolina trade favored the Bills.

  • The picks the Chiefs' traded were valued at 226 points, while the Bills' picks to KC were valued at 227, so fairly even.
  • The picks in the Carolina-Buffalo trade brought 194 points to the Bills, while Carolina received 189 back, so that deal slightly favored the Bills.

Reuter wrote: "Buffalo found the potential big-play receiver it needed in Coleman after trading down twice in Round 1 (for relatively small gain)....Bishop should be a good starter. Carter adds determination and leadership to the defensive line, although he was picked a bit earlier than I expected."

For rounds 2-7, Reuter graded the Bills in the A to A- range, noting that 4th rounder RB Davis is a "perfect complement to James Cook" and that Reuter had 5th rounder interior lineman Van Pran-Granger mocked to Bills as "good value for a stout pivot."

Reuter liked the Bill's later draft moves too, stating that "securing a 2025 fourth-round pick for a fifth-rounder this year in a trade with the Bears will pay dividends down the road. Solomon is shorter than most Bills edge rushers, but he gets to the quarterback. Hardy could be a nickel candidate and is a strong return man."

The complete Buffalo Bills 2024 NFL Draft:

  • Round 6 • Pick 28 (204) • OT Tylan Grable University of Central Florida
  • Round 6 • Pick 43 (219) • CB Daequan Hardy Penn State
  • Round 7 • Pick 1 (221) • OT Travis Clayton, Europe
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Chris Pirrone

CHRIS PIRRONE