The Buffalo Bills have had a top-30 visit with Virginia Tech tight end James Mitchell prior to the 2022 NFL draft, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Mitchell had a few promising seasons in college. In nine games in 2019, he had 21 catches for 361 yards and two scores in 11 games. He followed that up with a 26-435-5 stat line in nine games in 2020.
But then injury struck.
An All-ACC preseason selection heading into last season, Mitchell tore his ACL in the second game of the year. He is expected to be fully healed by 2022, but any injury puts a player’s draft stock into big-time question.
As his stats indicate, Mitchell can prove to be a playmaker from the tight end position. NFL.com writes “he has the size to play in-line but might be best suited in a role as a pass-catching H-back.”
Mitchell lists at 6-foot-3 and 255 pounds.
Based on the emergence of Dawson Knox and addition of OJ Howard in free agency, the Bills are appeared to be keen to continue to adding athletic, playmaking tight ends.
In coming to Buffalo, Mitchell would have time to marinate on the team’s depth chart behind those two before potentially taking on a bigger role down the line.
By having a top-30 visit with Mitchell, Buffalo does appear to have some legitimate interest in him. The Bills are allowed to have up to 30 draft prospects in for pre-draft workouts, meetings, and more, and they decided to allocate one of those to Mitchell.
He is currently not considered one of the top tight end prospects ahead of the draft, especially with his injury. Mitchell could be a player to watch for the Bills on the third and final day of the 2022 draft.
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