Many haven’t pegged the Buffalo Bills as a trade candidate at the 2020 NFL Draft.
Pro Football Focus tossed their name into the mix as one of the first ones doing so in their latest mock draft.
The football analytics outlets views the Bills as a trade back candidate. In doing so, the Bills move back from pick No. 22 to pick No. 26 via a trade with the Detroit Lions.
In the end, the Bills end up with wide receiver Denzel Mims from Baylor after the dust settles.
Here’s how PFF breaks down the deal:
The Bills can afford to accumulate more picks by moving back in the draft with how deep this receiving class is. Mims’ highlight-reel catch ability and physicality in contested situations is something the Bills do not have currently. His 20 contested catches in 2019 were the second most in college football.
In PFF’s draft, things fall this way for the Bills thanks to separate trade. The Dolphins trade up to the third-overall pick held by the Lions to draft quarterback Tua Tagovailoa from Alabama. In order to get there, the Dolphins send the No. 26 pick to the Lions, who then send it to the Bills.
In Mims, the Bills get “highlights,” as PFF mentions, but also size. The 6-foot-4 prospect had 12 touchdowns in his final season in college. Mims took part in the recent Senior Bowl and impressed during practices. Draft Wire tabbed Mims as one of their standouts from that prospect extravaganza.
If this scenario plays out of the Bills, plenty of Bills observers would view this as a win. Buffalo adds to their offensive arsenal while likely picking up more draft selections. One can also envision some of those extra picks coming at the 2021 NFL Draft, as the Bills already hold nine picks at the upcoming rookie selection event.
Jordan Love to Denzel Mims down the sideline. Baylor’s Denzel Mims stock is going way up. pic.twitter.com/pGK3Y8TkJS
— Connor Livesay (@ConnorNFLDraft) January 22, 2020
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