The Buffalo Bills are unlikely to get back into the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft later this week. Sorry, it’s probably going to be a slow Thursday.
But a recent CBS Sports mock draft has the Bills making a roll of the dice in an area the club has done so in recent years: early in the second round. Buffalo makes a move up in a switch with the Panthers to land a first-round talent in Iowa edge defender AJ Epenesa:
The Bills don’t have a ton of needs after a busy offseason that included dealing their first-round pick in a move to add a No. 1 receiver in Stefon Diggs, so they should feel comfortable packaging some picks together to make a move in Round 2 if a prospect of interest falls. Here that’s Epenesa, who disappointed at the combine but should be a strong defensive end at the next level. He’ll mix in as a rookie and take over as a starter in 2021.
The analysis of the move makes a lot of sense for the Bills. Buffalo could be looking to land back in the first round, but really they don’t have enough capital to do so. Moving up high in the second round is exactly what the Bills have done under head coach Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane over the past few drafts. The duo moved up in that ballpark to select Zay Jones and Dion Dawkins. Plus, there’s always the Bills-Panthers connection to consider, although, Carolina has made wholesale changes in their front office this offseason.
In Epenesa, while underwhelming at the scouting combine, he previously was a played pegged as a potential pick for the Bills in the first round of the draft, before the team traded away their top pick for Stefon Diggs. Epenesa would still see some playing time as a rookie, as the Bills consistently run a rotation along their defensive line. He’d likely be behind Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison in the pecking order early in his career, though.
In this mock, the Bills make another late trade back in a deal with the Broncos to add some more depth along their roster. That helps make up for the third-round pick the Bills dealt to the Panthers to select Epenesa.
Of Buffalo’s later picks in the seven-round mock, another AJ, Boston College running back AJ Dillon in the fourth round is the next and most intriguing pick by Buffalo. At near 240 pounds, Dillon is a stocky and powerful pack, perhaps the ideal complement to Devin Singletary.
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