Bills Should Add Flashy Pass Rusher Cashius Howell After Insider's Draft Analysis

It’s appearing more and more likely that the Buffalo Bills will attack an edge rusher with their first-round pick in the upcoming NFL Draft.

And there is one player in particular that is a perfect fit for the Bills at pick No. 26 in the first round: Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell.

New Bills defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard spent the past two seasons with the Denver Broncos. While he was not the Broncos’ DC during that time, Denver’s defensive approach offered hints about how Leonhard will assemble his unit in his first year leading an NFL defense.

By the numbers

Texas A&M Aggies defensive end Cashius Howell (9) reacts after a sack during the fourth quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Kyle Field. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

A study delivered by The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia revealed that the Broncos used just two defensive linemen on 62% of their snaps during the 2025 season, most often opting for nickel defense rather than the team’s base 3-4, which the Bills will deploy under Leonhard. Despite being an odd-man front in name, per Buscaglia’s analysis, Buffalo is likely to function similarly to how Denver has recently.

Therefore, while some have been pounding the table for the Bills to draft a stout nose tackle with their first-round pick, Buscaglia believes it would be more logical for the team to bring in a player who can help them on the edge.

“The Bills could certainly use a nose tackle for depth, but that comes across more like a later-round pick or, more likely, a veteran addition after the draft,” wrote Buscaglia. “A defensive lineman who could be used at end could receive a bit more of a justification with an early-round pick because of the positional versatility.”

A big name

Enter Howell, a freak athlete who ran a 4.6 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting combine, which was the fourth-fastest time of any player at his position. Additionally, his speed of 14.52 mph was the fastest of any player in the pass-rush drill since Will Anderson Jr. in 2023 [14.9 mph]. The 23-year-old measures 6-foot-2, 248 pounds and would be a nice addition to Buffalo’s pass rush.

Howell has scared off some draft evaluators due to his short arm length of 30 1/4 inches. He is also not considered to be a plus run defender at this stage of his career. With that said, he recorded 25 sacks over the past three seasons at the college level, setting the stage for a dominant NFL career as a pass rusher.

Past commitment

Deone Walker, T.J. Sanders — Bills rookie defensive tackles Deone Walker, 96, and T.J. Sanders, 98, square off during drills during the opening day of Buffalo Bills training camp. | Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Howell would join two 2025 draft picks in the team’s defensive trenches, as fourth-round DT Deone Walker and second-round DT T.J. Sanders each made their way to Buffalo a year ago. The Bills have used an immense amount of draft capital on the defensive line in recent seasons, including a third-round pick and fifth-round selection on DT DeWayne Carter and EDGE Javon Solomon, respectively, in 2024.

Buffalo is also equipped with DT Ed Oliver and EDGE Greg Rousseau, the team’s two leading defensive linemen. If they were to select Howell, the group would become jam-packed. With that said, the Bills need to improve up front this season and in a big way. They finished the ’25 campaign as the fifth-worst run defense in the league and tied for 20th in the NFL in total sacks.

Bills OnSI previously wrote about Howell’s fit with the Bills earlier during the predraft process. As the draft draws nearer, he’s making more and more sense as the player for Buffalo if he’s available late in the first round.

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