Bills select intriguing former Top 10 pick in 2021 NFL overhaul

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane has a strong track record of selecting quality players in the first round of the annual NFL Draft, with one of his most unheralded successes coming late in the 2021 first round The team selected Miami defensive end Greg Rousseau – then considered a “boom or bust” prospect – with the 30th overall pick, taking a swing at the 6-foot-7 passer who flashed. its limited collegiate band. The selection has paid off so far; Rousseau hasn’t necessarily been a world champion, but he’s been sturdy, immediately establishing himself as one of the team’s best defenders while providing occasional production as a passer to the tune of 17 career sacks .

What made Buffalo’s choice of Rousseau so interesting at the time was the fact that he was available; the passer had been highly touted after a redshirt freshman season in which he notched 15.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss. He opted out of the COVID-impacted 2020 season, however, giving prognosticators a year to comb through his tape and hyperanalyze flaws that, in hindsight, probably weren’t as detrimental as they initially appeared . He probably should have been selected much earlier than the 30th overall pick, and if the draft had been held today, he would almost certainly be a top 20 pick.

Related: Bills land former Top 3 pick in 2022 NFL overhaul

That sentiment was reflected in the recent 2021 NFL Draft redraft of the 33rd team, as Rousseau went to the Miami Dolphins with the No. 18 pick. Buffalo ultimately selected South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn with the No. 30 pick in Marcus Mosher’s redraft; the defensive back was originally selected by the Carolina Panthers with the No. 8 pick.

“The Buffalo Bills were hoping that Kaiir Elam would become a No. 1 cornerback, but that never happened,” Mosher wrote. “Jaycee Horn has shown that type of ability, but he needs to stay on the field. He’s only played in 22 games in three seasons, but he has all the talent in the world to be an elite player.”

Horn, as Mosher notes, has shown flashes of being an elite cornerback, but various injuries have plagued him throughout his three professional seasons (he was limited to just 22 games). He has tallied 13 pass deflections and four interceptions in those contests; according to PFF, he has allowed just 0.83 yards per coverage over the past two seasons, good for eighth among cornerbacks.

Adding a potentially elite defender like Horn to a group of Buffalo cornerbacks that also includes Rasul Douglas, Christian Benford and Kaiir Elam would be nice, but not at the expense of Rousseau. Buffalo nailed this pick on the first go-around – thankfully the new releases are just a fun offseason exercise and not reality.

—Benefit from free bill coverage Buffalo Bills on SI—

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