After dealing Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans, the Buffalo Bills are searching for a new No. 1 wide receiver. However, the significant financial impact of Diggs’ departure makes finding a replacement in free agency difficult.
The Bills were previously slated to select a receiver in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft. However, after losing Diggs, pundits anticipate Buffalo will seek to trade up to acquire one of the top prospects. The Athletic’s Charlotte Carroll and Joe Buscaglia suggested Buffalo might skyrocket in a blockbuster trade with the New York Giants.
To acquire a fresh weapon for Bills quarterback Josh Allen at No. 6, Buffalo trades their 2024 first-round pick (No. 28), 2024 second-round pick (No. 60), 2024 fourth-round pick (No. 128), and 2025 first-round pick to fresh York. The Bills obtain the Giants’ 2024 first-round pick (No. 6) as well as their 2025 seventh-round pick.
While this trade idea is a “long shot,” Carroll and Buscaglia advised readers to remember the two teams’ longstanding bond. Giants general manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll are both from Buffalo, so they are quite familiar with Bills general manager Brandon Beane and coach Sean McDermott. If a trade of this significance occurs, these teams are likely to form a partnership.”
Beane has a history of trading up in the draft, but this is a significant increase. “This receiver class, especially with the three top receivers — Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, and Rome Odunze — has a chance to be one of the best we’ve seen in recent memory,” Buscaglia wrote in a statement.
“With Allen’s contract ballooned, pairing him with a potential top-flight receiver on a cost-controlled rookie deal makes a ton of sense, especially with how much it costs for a top-tier receiver in today’s NFL.”
ESPN Analyst Urges Bills to Trade Down in the NFL Draft
Trading up to No. 6 sounds thrilling, but foregoing two first-round picks for an unknown asset is a tremendous risk. Unless Beane believes one of the top receivers is a potential superstar, he may stay put. Beane may trade down due to the depth of receiving talent in this year’s draft class.
While trading up for a guy like Odunze, as ESPN’s Mina Kimes recommended, is “entirely reasonable,” ESPN insider Bill Barnwell said, he urged Buffalo to take the other approach.
“They do not need to add a wide receiver. Barnwell remarked, “They need two or three, both now and in the future.” “Check out what the Chiefs and Packers have done. Kansas City traded Tyreek Hill, opting for quantity over quality.
With Diggs gone, the Bills’ best receivers are Curtis Samuel, Khalil Shakir, Mack Hollins, and tight end Dalton Kincaid. “I’m not even sure this is an above-average receiving corps if the team moved up for Odunze,” Barnwell wrote in a blog post.
“With this draft widely regarded as one of the deepest wide out classes in recent memory, the Bills might trade down from here and add a couple of useful wideouts. Regaining the third-round pick they traded to the Packers for Rasul Douglas would be beneficial, and they also have additional fourth and fifth-round picks.”
Bills GM Suggested They Wouldn’t Solely Rely on the 2024 NFL Draft to Find a New WR
Buffalo has a lot of work to do at wide receiver, and Beane knows it. “Are we better now? “Probably not,” Beane told reporters following the Diggs trade.
“It is a work in progress, and we will continue to work on it. I hope people realize I am fiercely competitive. I’m not giving in. We’ll work through this and continue to look. I’m confidence in the players on our roster, as well as the staff that supports me.”
While The Ringer’s Benjamin Solak told Kay Adams, “Don’t be surprised” if the Bills make “a big” Round 1 deal, Beane hinted that they won’t simply be acquiring skill in the draft. “We don’t play games until September,” he told me. “I’m going to turn over every stone to add depth and competition.”
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