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The Buffalo Bills select at the No. 31 overall spot in Draft Wire’s way-too-early 2023 NFL mock draft.
While they’re our friends… c’mon, man. That’s a tough place to see the Bills drafting since that means they’d be losing in the Super Bowl…
Beyond that, their work makes sense. Buffalo uses that selection to take Notre Dame offensive lineman Jarrett Patterson.
Here’s the breakdown via draft analyst Luke Easterling:
The interior of this offensive line could use some work. While guard is a bigger need than center at the moment, Patterson could start at that spot before sliding inside if the Bills ever need to replace Mitch Morse, who just turned 30.
The idea with Patterson should sound familiar. In 2009, the Bills selected Louisville center Eric Wood.
Early in Wood’s career, he played guard before kicking over to center. He ended up playing most of his career in the middle of the O-line in Buffalo, up until his retirement in 2017, so this transition is a proven one.
Patterson is viewed as an athletic offensive line prospect as well. Since Buffalo hired Aaron Kromer as their O-line coach earlier this offseason, that’s the type of player the Bills have targeted for the trenches.
It’s a long ways away, but if Patterson has a positive 2023 season at Notre Dame, he could very well be on the Bills’ draft radar in a year.
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