Niagara Gazette

‘Over the course of three days, the Buffalo Bills are allotted 10 hours per day to hold their yearly rookie minicamp. For their nine draft picks, it’s orientation and an introduction to how an NFL practice is conducted. For the other 30 or so players — give or take a priority undrafted free agent — it’s a tryout.’

‘If there is a year a wide receiver could sneak onto the roster, this is it. The Bills are still seeking a special teams-oriented receiver and whether Akharaiyi can cover kicks and punts will determine his fate. He only played three years of FBS football after two years of junior college. He had 1,033 yards and seven touchdowns on just 43 receptions at UTP in 2023, but his numbers dropped to 25 grabs for 391 yards at Mississippi State last year. At 6-foot-1, 200 pounds, Akharaiyi is a tweener between slot receiver and outside receiver.’

‘The start of Elijah Moore’s career hasn’t gone according to plan.’

‘The Buffalo Bills have more positional battles on tap than they have in recent memory. Even after a roster purge led to eight of 10 draft picks making last year’s roster, there wasn’t much mystery on cutdown day.’

‘Anyone looking for the “Aha!” moment on Brandon Beane might want to pump the brakes for a minute.’

‘Elijah Moore agreed Wednesday to a one-year contract worth $5 million, first reported by ESPN. The 25-year-old has four seasons of NFL experience, the last two with the Cleveland Browns after being a 2021 second-round pick of the New York Jets.’

‘Brandon Beane hasn’t been overly concerned about the Buffalo Bills offense. He’s addressed it on multiple occasions during the pre-draft lead-up. And he’s apparently tired of talking about it.’

‘The Buffalo Bills scored 29 points in their AFC championship game loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, two shy of their season average. Even if the Bills scored 31 points in that game, they still would have lost by one.’

‘General manager Brandon Beane also didn’t seem concerned about taking one Friday night. Well, we quickly learned why. The Bills traded a fourth-round pick (132) and a fifth-round pick (169) to the Chicago Bears for the 109th pick, the one they traded away to draft South Carolina defensive tackle T.J. Sanders.’

‘Time will tell how his draft picks pan out. But at the very least, the Buffalo Bills are primed to have serious competition at cornerback and defensive tackle.’

‘The Bills took defensive players with their first five picks of the NFL draft and six of their first seven. Buffalo has gone from lacking depth to creating what should be intriguing training camp battles.’

‘For the first time since 2018, the Bills used three consecutive draft picks on one side of the ball and took three defensive players in a row to start the draft for the first time since 2016. After taking Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston in the first round, the Bills added a pair of defensive linemen, with all picks coming from the Southeastern Conference.’

‘Hairston’s biggest concern coming out of Kentucky was his tackling ability. Whether it was a willingness or technique, the physical part of the game wasn’t considered Hairston’s strong suit.’

‘Five months before the Bills selected Hairston with the 30th pick in the NFL draft, Hairston was sitting in the stands of Detroit’s Ford Field. Hairston grew up 30 minutes from Detroit and Kentucky teammate and Bills running back Ray Davis gave him tickets when the Bills visited in December.’

‘The Bills enter the second day of the draft with the 56th and 62nd picks in the second round. They also have two fourth-round picks and three fifth-rounders to maneuver around if they choose.’