The cornerback position is one many have their eyes on regarding the Buffalo Bills and their top pick at the 2022 NFL draft.
At No. 25, there should be plenty of options. One that’s unlikely to be there is LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr.
He’s viewed as one of the top two corners (Sauce Gardner) heading into Round 1. They both could go in the top-10 picks.
But prior to his pre-draft stock shooting way up the board, the Bills had interest in him, according to Albert Breer of the MMQB.
In his weekly column ahead of the draft later this week, Breer wrote that Stingley had attention from Buffalo.
Here’s what Breer wrote:
The Bills’ roster might be the NFL’s most well-rounded, and so Buffalo’s going to be able to use most of its picks to work on needs a year or two out and build depth across the board. One spot that’s been pointed out pretty consistently as a need is corner. And I’d heard the Bills connected to Stingley at one point, with the thought of his being around fellow LSU Tiger Tre’Davious White, but I don’t think Stingley falls to a point where moving to get him would be realistic for the Bills. So someone like Washington’s Kyler Gordon might make sense here. Or they could grab a back, like Iowa State’s Breece Hall, as a luxury pick, since they don’t have many holes to fill.
As referenced, could Stingley still have interest from the Bills if they could trade up to get him. But it still looks like he’s going to be off the board far too early.
In a recent mock draft from our friends at Touchdown Wire, Stingley is taken at No. 9 overall by the Seattle Seahawks.
However, it’s not impossible to envision Stingley falling.
After a stellar freshman season for LSU, he only played 10 total games over the next two seasons due to injury. If teams are concerned about his health, he could fall.
As a 6-foot, 190 pound defensive back prospect, Stingley has the size and frame for the pros. At NFL.com, Stingley is said to be “well-suited for a variety of zone coverages.” The Bills play a heavy zone scheme on defense, so Buffalo likely does have a lot of interest.
Much of the Bills potentially trading up will have to do with the compensation, though. Other corners, such as Gordon, could likely be on the board later in the first round when Buffalo is on the clock. They too could play in a zone scheme and fit the Bills without the team needing to trade up.
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