Five DTs came off the board last night and the ones we’d hoped for went well before us.
Sanders was generally ranked in the 5-7 range of DTs in one of the deepest classes in a long time. So, the fact that we took him as the 6th DT coupled with the fact that SF took Collins next, seems to validate the range of the pick and the trade was fair based on the charts.
The Bills have their “type” and Sanders seems to be a perfect fit. Here’s another positive write up on Sanders this one from the ESPN:
“Sanders is an outstanding run defender who can play two gaps and one gap. He shoots his hands, stacks blockers and sheds in time to make plays. He's light but is strong, and he holds his ground on-on-one. He slips blocks, locates the ball and wraps up in the backfield. Sanders won't have to come off the field in passing situations. He gets to the quarterback by winning with his hands and his ability to change directions. He excels at running stunts.”
There have been a lot of other positive comments about Sanders pre-draft and post-draft so I won’t rush to judgment. The draft is deep at DT so there’s still hope that we can get a traditional two down DT1 to complement the roster much like Hairston hopefully will and he wasn’t seen as a “Billsy pick” so maybe we’ll make a similar move later on.