Bills first-round CB Maxwell Hairston faces civil lawsuit stemming from 2021 incident

Buffalo Bills’ rookie Maxwell Hairston is facing a civil suit for a 2021 incident.

Randy Gurzi | Jul 2, 2025

Buffalo Bills Maxwell Hairston jogs to another area of the field during voluntary workout at their practice facility. / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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The Buffalo Bills selected Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston in the first round of the 2025 NFL draft. At the time, they knew Hairston had faced a serious allegation in the past.

In 2021, Hairston was accused of sexual assault. The incident was reported to police, but Hairston was never charged.

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Now, the allegations are in the news again as WKBW.com is reporting that Hairston is facing a civil suit for the incident.

Buffalo Bills CB Maxwell Hairston works out during Minicamp at Highmark Stadium.

Buffalo Bills cornerback Maxwell Hairston works out during Minicamp at Highmark Stadium. / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

According to the report, the Bills were fully aware of the previous reports, but felt confident in Hairston — and believed he was innocent.

"We did a lot of research. I think all teams were aware of the Title IX thing. That was fully investigated by the school. He even volunteered to do a polygraph and had notes. It was one of those where there was zero information saying that this actually happened, to what the accusation was. You can't take someone's account and think that's the truth. But yes, we fully investigated that," Beane said via WKBW.

He added that the league wouldn’t have allowed Hairston to attend the NFL Combine if they felt there was anything to the complaint.

Now, Hairston will have to revisit the allegations in a civil setting.

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