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The Buffalo Bills hit it out of the park with their 2018 NFL draft class according to Pro Football Focus.
If you know the details, that comes as little surprise.
In PFF’s re-grading of every draft class from that year, Buffalo earned an A-plus mark.
That draft saw the Bills land the quarterbacks for both their offense and defense.
On offense that’s clearly Josh Allen.
And while the football analytics outlet is tough on him, defensively, Buffalo drafted linebacker Tremaine Edmunds that same year.
Plus, we have a few other important selections mixed in there–for better or worse.
Here’s the breakdown:
Truthfully, the “A+” grade comes down to the Allen selection, as the Bills could have drafted me with their next pick and still earned that grade. That’s the value of an elite signal-caller such as Allen. They didn’t, however, draft me with their next pick, as they took Edmunds, who probably hasn’t lived up to the 16th overall pick billing just yet. He’s more valuable for the plays we never see made, though, as he shuts down passing windows with his absurd wingspan.
The real steal of this class ended up being one of Brandon Beane’s biggest blunders to date. Teller has developed into a top-three right guard in the NFL; yet, Beane gave up on him after only one season in a Bills uniform by trading him to the Browns prior to the 2019 season.
Allen and Edmunds headline this group, continuing to track down the selections, defensive tackle Harrison Phillips (Round 3) made consistent contributions for the Bills for four years. He recently left, but did his part while in Buffalo.
Defensive backs Taron Johnson (Round 4) and Siran Neal (Round 5) are also strong prospects the Bills picked up this year. Then comes the bad news.
Offensive lineman Wyatt Teller (Round 5) then is picked by Buffalo. That ended up going well, but not for the Bills as he was traded way too soon.
But Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane has admitted that mistake. He has since stated he won’t give up on prospects too soon anymore, which is why Cody Ford and a few other young players are still on the Bills to this day.
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