The Buffalo Bills and general manager Brandon Beane had a horrible 2026 NFL Draft. There are no two ways about it. And that’s saying something for a general manager who has drafted just one (non-fill-in) Pro Bowler since 2019. How bad was it? We’ll try to answer that question in our Bills’ 2026 NFL Draft grades for every pick.
This should have been Beane’s type of draft. For a GM who routinely throws positional value out the window and drafts non-premium positions (TE, RB, OG, DT, S) in the first two rounds, a draft heavy with non-premium talent should have been where he flourished. Instead, Beane traded out of Round 1 entirely. He then drafted an EDGE and traded up for a CB because—according to his own words— those are premium positions, something he apparently now cares about.
It wasn’t just the positions he picked, either. It was the type of players.
Just like the thrice-divorced 45-year-old, Brandon Beane has a type. And he drafted that type over and over again in 2026 despite A, having redundant players on the roster, and B, those types of players failing the team time and over time in the biggest moments. With a (sort of) fresh start and a (kind of) new head coach, the 2026 NFL Draft could have been the moment that Beane kicked some of his old habits and tried something new. Instead, it was more of the same, just to an even less inspiring degree than usual.
Round 2, Pick 35: EDGE T.J. Parker
Beane and the Bills traded back three times to acquire the 35th pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. While most experts agree that trading back is a smart move, the way Beane does it is not. The reason trading back is smart is because even the best drafters have around a 50% hit rate. So, if no one knows for sure how these guys will turn out, taking more players will increase the number of potential good players.
What Beane does is win each trade based on a relatively arbitrary draft pick value metric but often simply gets higher picks instead of more picks. When he does get more picks, he usually uses those to trade up to get a player he loves in later rounds.
But again, the fact that Beane traded back to land T.J. Parker is not really the issue. At 35, there were still several intriguing edge rushers on the board such as Cashius Howell, Zion Young, and Gabe Jacas.
The problem is, Parker is simply the same type of player that Beane always drafts at EDGE. From Gregory Rousseau to A.J. Epenesa to Boogie Basham, the edge-rushers Beane likes in the first two rounds are always the same. Those three have combined for 60.5 sacks over a total of 13 seasons with the Bills. That’s a little over 4.5 sacks per player per season.
Parker is a powerful end who is solid against the run but lacks the explosion of the league’s premier pass rushers. He’s Rousseau 2.0 if he reaches his ceiling. In our initial Day-2 draft grades, we gave the Packer pick a C. After more thought, that grade drops even more.
Grade: C-
Round 2, Pick 62: CB Davison Igbinosun
Speaking of Beane not learning from his mistakes, trading back up into the end of Round 2 to take Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun had to give Bills Mafia flashbacks of Kaiir Elam and T.J. Sanders from last year.
The Elam comparison comes from the fact that Igbinosun is a big, physical corner who doesn’t have a ton of production and is a penalty machine. Igbinosun had a staggering 30 penalties in college, which was a major problem for Elam in the pros. In fact, the former Bills first-round pick infamously had to wear boxing gloves in practice to try to teach him not to hold.
The Sanders comparisons come from the fact that, like with the South Carolina DT, Beane traded up in the second round to get him, giving away valuable picks to do so. And he did that when it seemed like these two may have fallen to the Bills anyway, and if not, that’s OK, because they are middling prospects to begin with.
Taking a corner is not the sin here. Trading up for a penalty-prone one is, which is why this also gets a low grade.
Grade: C-
Round 4, Pick 102: OT Jude Bowry
The Bills didn’t entirely whiff on the 2026 NFL Draft. In Round 4 and early Round 5 Beane made some intriguing picks who could help the team this season. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, since Beane has been much better picking players on Day 3 than he has on Days 1 and 2.
Jude Bowry is a solid swing tackle prospect. He’s raw but athletic. He could be a valuable backup as early as this season, and with the right coaching, he could become a long-term answer at one of the tackle spots as Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown get older.
Grade: B-
Round 4, Pick 125: WR Skyler Bell
Even after trading for D.J. Moore, the Bills still needed to add a wide receiver in the 2026 NFL Draft. UConn’s Skyler Bell was the choice.
Bell was productive in college and has a defined skillset. He can be eclectic with the ball in his hands and can play in the slot or on the outside. He is on the shorter side at just a hair under 6 feet, but is not too short for the position at all.
It seems as though Bell can have success at the NFL level, because players with his profile have. In fact, Bell reminds many of Khalil Shakir, who is already on the Bills roster. Overall, this is a fine pick, but for fans who hope Joe Brady will get over his bubble screen fetish, this is not a good sign for you.
Grade: B
Round 4, Pick 126: LB Kaleb Elarms-Orr
Kalen Elarms-Orr is a big (6-foot-2, 234 pounds), athletic linebacker who plays downhill. He can run and hit and blitz the quarterback, which is something new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhrad wants in his aggressive 3-4 defense.
The knock on Elarms-Orr is that he does not have good instincts. He’s susceptible to fakes, complex plays, and “eye-candy” at the line of scrimmage. If Leonhard just points him in one direction and lets him wreck things, he could find playing time. If you’re looking for a smart, green-dot LB in the middle of the defense, though, he’s not your guy.
Grade: C+
Round 5, Pick 167: S Jalon Kilgore
This was the best pick the Bills made in the 2026 NFL Draft. South Carolina safety Jalon Kilgore is an incredible athlete with great size who can play in a number of spots on the Bills’ defense. As an overhang safety, a big nickel, or even as a deep safety, Kilgore has the physical makeup to do it all.
The former Gamecock fell from a possible Round 2 selection all the way to Round 5, and Beane did a good job scooping him up. Don’t be surprised if Kilgore becomes a starter next to Cole Bishop sooner rather than later.
Grade: B+
Round 5, Pick 181: DT Zane Durant
And we’re back to the Brandon Beane vanity hour, as the GM once again picks a redundant player who is not what the Bills need on the line. Zane Durant is actually an intriguing prospect as a potential high-end pass-rushing DT someday. Early in his career, he could be like T.J. Sanders. If he hits his ceiling, he could be Ed Oliver.
With Sanders, Oliver, and Deone Walker—who has a different style but is best at the same position on the line—why would you take Durant here? The Bills are desperate for a massive, run-stuffing nose tackle, and Beane refuses to draft one.
Grade: C+
Round 7, Pick 220: CB Toriano Pride Jr.
Toriano Pride Jr. is a small, fast corner who held up well in the SEC, but is a depth piece and special teamer at best in the pros. That’s fine for a seventh-round pick, which Beane seemed to want to stockpile in this draft.
Grade: C-
Round 7, Pick 239: P Tommy Doman Jr.
The scouting report on Tommy Doman Jr. is that he was a fine punter at Michigan and Floria but nothing all that special. Not sure why you’d burn a draft pick on a player with that profile when you probably could have signed him as a free agent after the draft.
Grade: D-
Round 7, Pick 241: G Ar’maj Reed-Adams
Beane closed out the Bills’ 2026 NFL Draft on a (relative) high note, picking guard Ar’maj Reed-Adams from Texas A&M. The former Aggie has decent size and some traits the team likes when it comes to pass blocking. He’ll be a fine backup or practice squad player.
Grade: C
The post Bills’ 2026 NFL Draft Grades for Every Pick appeared first on ClutchPoints.
