Who was the Bills best and worst draft pick of this century to this point?

[Big Turk]

Want your opinions to the thread title.

Your vote for the single best and worst draft pick the Bills have had since 2000.

 

For me, I am going to say the best is Tre White and the worst is Erik Flowers.

 

For me it came down between Gilmore and White and I gave the nod to White because he is doing what Gilmore is doing with the Patriots now with the Bills. Namely turning in all pro first team and pro bowl performances and last year not allowing a single TD in coverage. Can't get much better than that. Gilmore is a great player but he is much better with the Pats then he was with the Bills.

 

Maybe that is coaching or usage or scheme but at the end of the day that is the difference to me.

 

Erik Flowers is arguably one of the worst picks in Bills history. The man played 5 seasons in the NFL and only started a grand total of 6 games as a first round pick at DE. That's hard to do. Honorable mention to Mayhem Maybin and Mike Williams.

[34-78-83]

Best - Kyle Williams (Value)

 

Worst - Aaron Maybin (so.....sooo bad)

[ALLEN1QB]

Worst Losman

 

Best Allen

[CDogg20]

Best - Tre White (Kyle close second) 

 

 

Worst - Mike Williams (Maybin close second) 

[ehfeuh57]

Best: Nate Clements  (Most excited was McGahee)

 

Worst: EJ

[MJS]

Best: Tre White (1st round). Kyle Williams (5th round), Tremaine Edmunds (1st round), and Terrance McGee (4th round) are honorable mentions.

 

Worst: Sammy Watkins (Top 5) (Since we gave up two first rounders for him and he didn't even make it through his rookie contract with us. He was supposed to be our elite WR and he just wasn't.) Mike Williams (Top 5) and CJ Spiller (Top 10) are honorable mentions.

 

I think the picks that really set you back if you don't get a really good player that are staples for years are those top 10 picks. It's easier to forgive later round picks or even lower picks in the first round. But those top 10 picks NEED to pan out. That's why Sammy was such a blow. Not just a top 5 pick, but our next year's first rounder as well. Two potentially elite, franchise players down the tube.

[Straight Hucklebuck]

Best pick - Kyle Williams. Bills Wall of Famer in the 5th Round and spent 13 years  in Buffalo? Pretty good. 

 

Worst Pick - I don’t see how it can be anybody other than Maybin. Zero sacks with the Bills, by the second/third week of Training Camp you could sense he was a problem (arguing with Wood, getting mauled in practice). 
 

 

Edited April 20, 2020 by Straight Hucklebuck

[Straight Hucklebuck]

30 minutes ago, MJS said:

Worst: Sammy Watkins (Top 5) (Since we gave up two first rounders for him and he didn't even make it through his rookie contract with us. He was supposed to be our elite WR and he just wasn't.) Mike Williams (Top 5) and CJ Spiller (Top 10) are honorable mentions.

It’s a compelling case, especially because Khalil Mack from UB was there at #4 (I was screaming at the TV for him as the Bills picked, but knew they wouldn’t do it) and because obviously that draft was loaded with the best WR talent since the 2011 Jones/Green draft.  So we missed out on Evans, Beckham, Cooks, Landry and so on. 
 

Sammy’s ribs, Sammy’s foot, Sammy getting caught from behind by a Jets corner on the way into the end zone, the EJ-Sammy pairing lasting 4 total games, just a disaster pick. 

[Peace Frog]

I'm ranking my picks based on performance versus where they were picked.  

Best: Kyle Williams

Worst: Aaron Maybin

Completely on target: Tre White (He is who we thought he would be)

[Straight Hucklebuck]

The 2008 Draft was mind boggling it was so bad. McKelvin, James Hardy, Chris Ellis, Reggie Corner, Derek Fine, Alvin Bowen, Xavier Omon, Demetress Bell. At least the Bills got their #1 WR for three seasons: Steve Johnson in the 7th, and an ok corner in McKelvin. But not one of those other picks could play at all, not at all. 
 

Only to be rivaled by the 2010 Draft. Absolutely horrendous. Tom Modrak, a Jauron era holdover, still ran all the Scouting before being let go and it showed: Spiller, Troup, Carrington, Easley, Ed Wang, Arthur Moats, Danny Batten, Levi Brown and Kyle Calloway. 
 

All that draft capital spent on switch to the 3-4 defense that lasted 10 weeks before the Bills started talking about multiple fronts and switching back to the 4-3. And Moats played his best football for the Steelers. 

[NewEra]

Best-  Kyle Williams has to be the only answer for best pick.  He’s a 5th rd pick Wall of Famer. Other players may have been better but most were 1st rd picks.
 

Worst- Tre’Davious.  We took him instead of Mahomes. He’ll always be the pick that should’ve been the best QB in the league.

 

thats a joke, but I know some feel that feel that way.  
 

Real worst- Maybin-  he was always terrible.  Sammy was a higher pick and we gave up picks in the trade up, but he’s actually a good player.  He was actually good for us.  Maybin was never good. Ever

 

mike williams is honorable mention

Edited April 20, 2020 by NewEra

[Charles Romes]

Lynch best Spiller worst

[KollegeStudnet]

Worst: Aaron Maybin

Best: Kyle Williams 

 

[BuffaloBillies]

Matt milano in the 5th round may end up being one of the best value picks of all time. 

Maybin was such a turd.... Worst. 

 

[Buffalo Barbarian]

Josh Allen is the best

 

Aaron Maybin is the worst.

 

 

 

[CA OC Bills Fan]

Best: Kyle Williams 

Worst: The other d tackle taken in the same 2006 draft but 4 rounds earlier (1st round if that wasn’t obvious), John McCargo. I think he played even fewer snaps than Maybin in his career. Maybin was drafted much higher of course, but the Bills actually traded back into the first to get McCargo.

 

Another good same draft comparison was 2008, James Hardy in the 2nd and then Stevie Johnson in the 7th. I know, the question want the same draft, but just felt like pointing these ones out.

[Freddie's Dead]

Best:  Kyle Williams

Worst:  Sammy Watkins (three blown first-round picks, doesn't get any worse than that)

[GunnerBill]

5 hours ago, 34-78-83 said:

Best - Kyle Williams (Value)

 

Worst - Aaron Maybin (so.....sooo bad)

 

This is the answer. 

 

I hope the likes of Tre, Oliver and obviously Josh can surpass Kyle. That would mean good things. But at the moment it is is the guys who logged just shy of 50 career sacks, 6 pro bowl nods, and a second team all pro while playing on some pretty bad Bills teams. 

[Wayne Cubed]

Keeping the Williams vibe alive...

 

Best - Kyle Williams

 

Worst - Mike Williams

[chef4131]

I am sorry to be so definitive here  the worst pick is JP Losman, no other pick effects the team as badly.  Moving up in the draft to pick him cost the Bills the pick which would have been Aaron Rodgers.    

[Hebert19]

Maybin was definitely worst.  

 

But how about stevie in the 7th...set record for 100 yard seasons or jason Peter's undrafted as a 1st ballot HOFer

[aristocrat]

Best-Jason Peters

Worst-Spiller

[Bills!Win!]

Best - Kelvin Shepherd who was traded straight up for jerry Hughes 

 

Worst - Not picking Tom Brady. Not trading up to get Big Ben. Or Aaron Rodgers a few years later. 

Edited April 20, 2020 by Bills!Win!

[Florida Bills Fanatic]

Best: Bruce Smith

Worst: Aaron Maybin

[Phil The Thrill]

The worst has to be either:

 

EJ Manuel - the Bills reached and basically wasted a 1st round pick on a 3rd or 4th round prospect.  Worse yet they pushed a 3rd rounder as a franchise QB and the results were poor

 

Sammy Watkins - certainly not the worst player drafted.  But when you consider the value they gave up to draft him, the return they received, the other WR’s they passed on to select him, and the players that were available at other positions who could’ve helped, and this was a horrible pick.

Thanks Buddy Nix and Doug Whaley

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

8 hours ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

The 2008 Draft was mind boggling it was so bad. McKelvin, James Hardy, Chris Ellis, Reggie Corner, Derek Fine, Alvin Bowen, Xavier Omon, Demetress Bell. At least the Bills got their #1 WR for three seasons: Steve Johnson in the 7th, and an ok corner in McKelvin. But not one of those other picks could play at all, not at all. 
 

Only to be rivaled by the 2010 Draft. Absolutely horrendous. Tom Modrak, a Jauron era holdover, still ran all the Scouting before being let go and it showed: Spiller, Troup, Carrington, Easley, Ed Wang, Arthur Moats, Danny Batten, Levi Brown and Kyle Calloway. 
 

All that draft capital spent on switch to the 3-4 defense that lasted 10 weeks before the Bills started talking about multiple fronts and switching back to the 4-3. And Moats played his best football for the Steelers. 

 

Yeah - 2008 was pretty bad.  I'm not saying you HAVE to move around the draft - but it felt like they overdrafted a lot of guys that they liked.

 

2010 was bad... Not a great RB draft and they take one in the first because they need to push lynch out.  Yuck.

17 minutes ago, Phil The Thrill said:

The worst has to be either:

 

EJ Manuel - the Bills reached and basically wasted a 1st round pick on a 3rd or 4th round prospect.  Worse yet they pushed a 3rd rounder as a franchise QB and the results were poor

 

Sammy Watkins - certainly not the worst player drafted.  But when you consider the value they gave up to draft him, the return they received, the other WR’s they passed on to select him, and the players that were available at other positions who could’ve helped, and this was a horrible pick.

Thanks Buddy Nix and Doug Whaley

 

At least they traded down for EJ.  Tavon Austin and TJ Mcdonald for EJ Manuel, Kiko Alonso, Maquise Goodwin, and Chris Gragg.

 

Yikes. 

[Big Turk]

9 hours ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

Best pick - Kyle Williams. Bills Wall of Famer in the 5th Round and spent 13 years  in Buffalo? Pretty good. 

 

Worst Pick - I don’t see how it can be anybody other than Maybin. Zero sacks with the Bills, by the second/third week of Training Camp you could sense he was a problem (arguing with Wood, getting mauled in practice). 
 

 

 

Do you remember Erik Flowers?  Yeah, neither do a lot of people ?

8 hours ago, Peace Frog said:

I'm ranking my picks based on performance versus where they were picked.  

Best: Kyle Williams

Worst: Aaron Maybin

Completely on target: Tre White (He is who we thought he would be)

 

Tre is on target as a 27th pick in the first round?  He is performing more like a top 3 pick.  

8 hours ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

The 2008 Draft was mind boggling it was so bad. McKelvin, James Hardy, Chris Ellis, Reggie Corner, Derek Fine, Alvin Bowen, Xavier Omon, Demetress Bell. At least the Bills got their #1 WR for three seasons: Steve Johnson in the 7th, and an ok corner in McKelvin. But not one of those other picks could play at all, not at all. 
 

Only to be rivaled by the 2010 Draft. Absolutely horrendous. Tom Modrak, a Jauron era holdover, still ran all the Scouting before being let go and it showed: Spiller, Troup, Carrington, Easley, Ed Wang, Arthur Moats, Danny Batten, Levi Brown and Kyle Calloway. 
 

All that draft capital spent on switch to the 3-4 defense that lasted 10 weeks before the Bills started talking about multiple fronts and switching back to the 4-3. And Moats played his best football for the Steelers. 

 

Spiller had a season where he was absolutely electric...

[RyanC883]

2 hours ago, Bills!Win! said:

Best - Kelvin Shepherd who was traded straight up for jerry Hughes 

 

Worst - Not picking Tom Brady. Not trading up to get Big Ben. Or Aaron Rodgers a few years later. 

 

add in not drafting Russel Wilson.  

unfortunately, pre-Bean, so many bad ones to chose from

 

I'd go with Maybin.  The fact he had ONE good year in college and was not the right size for the position, it was clear he never should have been drafted, esp. in the 1st.  perhaps as a LB?  

 

Best: so few to pick from: Tre White at the current time because you can argue he is the best CB in the league.  Josh Allen, because he is projecting as a franchise and top 10 QB.  Kyle Williams, the value here is amazing.  

[MiltonWaddams]

Best: Tre

Worst: Flowers

I looked at this as best player drafted by the Bills since 2000. If we evaluate it based on value, Kyle is the best and Sammy is the worst. But the true best player ( not going to judge Josh’s “finished product” status yet) is Tre and the worst (without getting into bums that were bums when they were drafted) was definitely Flowers.

[Straight Hucklebuck]

23 minutes ago, matter2003 said:

 

Do you remember Erik Flowers?  Yeah, neither do a lot of people ?

 

Tre is on target as a 27th pick in the first round?  He is performing more like a top 3 pick.  

 

Spiller had a season where he was absolutely electric...

 

From Day One, the Bills had no plan for CJ Spiller. 

 

In 2010, he got 74 carries the entire season. Come 2011, he was averaging 3.3 combined rush and receiving touches per game before Fred Jackson got hurt. 

 

That's a year and a half where he was a bit player because of Chan Gailey. At one point the Bills were so desperate for WR's there was talk of moving Spiller there. Remember all the "get him in space" talks because the Coaches couldn't figure out anything else.  

 

He had the electric 2012, despite being chained into a ridiculous timeshare with Fred, and then it's like he got old and faded out. He had the 900 yard season, after in 2013, and then he was effectively done in the league. 

[T master]

10 hours ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

Best pick - Kyle Williams. Bills Wall of Famer in the 5th Round and spent 13 years  in Buffalo? Pretty good. 

 

Worst Pick - I don’t see how it can be anybody other than Maybin. Zero sacks with the Bills, by the second/third week of Training Camp you could sense he was a problem (arguing with Wood, getting mauled in practice). 
 

 

 

I give the worst to Maybin from the green room at the draft when they announced him being picked by the Bills you could see by his facial expression that he wasn't happy then every appearance after that when brought to Buffalo he just seemed disingenuous with any body language or facial expressions .

 

He was a all around fake from the stage to the field which is to bad for someone to work that hard to make it at something they apparently love then to fail miserably would be such a personal disappointment but he did get a bunch of cash for his acting ability's so that probably helped out !! 

 

The best Bills pick for as far as where he was drafted & what he gave to the team & the city Kyle Williams by far !! 

 

 

Edited April 20, 2020 by T master

[Straight Hucklebuck]

1 hour ago, Phil The Thrill said:

The worst has to be either:

 

EJ Manuel - the Bills reached and basically wasted a 1st round pick on a 3rd or 4th round prospect.  Worse yet they pushed a 3rd rounder as a franchise QB and the results were poor

 

Sammy Watkins - certainly not the worst player drafted.  But when you consider the value they gave up to draft him, the return they received, the other WR’s they passed on to select him, and the players that were available at other positions who could’ve helped, and this was a horrible pick.

Thanks Buddy Nix and Doug Whaley

 

You look at the 2014 Draft - Literally pick anyone but Watkins and you would have hit. Aaron Donald, Beckham, Evans, Shazier, Barr, Lewan, Mosley, Zach Martin, literally 1/2 the 1st Round turned out to be Pro Bowl players. Nope it was Jacksonville (Bortles), Rams (Greg Robinson) and the Bills (Watkins) holding it down for the bust crowd. 

[Steve O]

Worst - T J Graham...traded up in the third and passed on Wilson. Not that he was the biggest bust, that would be Maybin or Williams. But the question is about best and worst pick. We liked Wilson at the time. A few years ago I saw a special on Wilson where the Seattle war room was being shown and they knew Buffalo had traded up to draft Wilson. Then there was elation when we picked Graham. 

 

Drafting Williams in the fifth was a great value pick. While Peters was also great value, he was UDFA, not a draft pick.

[Straight Hucklebuck]

Just now, Steve O said:

Worst - T J Graham...traded up in the third and passed on Wilson. Not that he was the biggest bust, that would be Maybin or Williams. But the question is about best and worst pick. We liked Wilson at the time. A few years ago I saw a special on Wilson where the Seattle war room was being shown and they knew Buffalo had traded up to draft Wilson. Then there was elation when we picked Graham. 

 

Drafting Williams in the fifth was a great value pick. While Peters was also great value, he was UDFA, not a draft pick.

 

I remember Nix laughing that the Bills were "riverboat gamblers" on the trade up from Graham. 

 

And he said later in the interview that they loved everything about Wilson but his height. 

 

[Straight Hucklebuck]

There are two trains of thought emerging in this thread. 

 

The literal worst player the Bills have picked in the first round since 2000, and the one that drastically altered the direction of the franchise. 

 

The worst literal player I agree with the OP, it was Flowers or Maybin. 

 

But Steve O is right, Graham over Wilson in the 3rd Round changed the fortunes for both franchises. 

[NewEra]

10 hours ago, NewEra said:

Best-  Kyle Williams has to be the only answer for best pick.  He’s a 5th rd pick Wall of Famer. Other players may have been better but most were 1st rd picks.
 

Worst- Tre’Davious.  We took him instead of Mahomes. He’ll always be the pick that should’ve been the best QB in the league.

 

thats a joke, but I know some feel that feel that way.  
 

Real worst- Maybin-  he was always terrible.  Sammy was a higher pick and we gave up picks in the trade up, but he’s actually a good player.  He was actually good for us.  Maybin was never good. Ever

 

mike williams is honorable mention

@MJS just wondering why you’re so confused?

 

best- kyle

 

then there was a joke.  

 

worst-  maybin

worst honorable mention- Mike williams
 

 

 

 

[Big Turk]

1 hour ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

 

From Day One, the Bills had no plan for CJ Spiller. 

 

In 2010, he got 74 carries the entire season. Come 2011, he was averaging 3.3 combined rush and receiving touches per game before Fred Jackson got hurt. 

 

That's a year and a half where he was a bit player because of Chan Gailey. At one point the Bills were so desperate for WR's there was talk of moving Spiller there. Remember all the "get him in space" talks because the Coaches couldn't figure out anything else.  

 

He had the electric 2012, despite being chained into a ridiculous timeshare with Fred, and then it's like he got old and faded out. He had the 900 yard season, after in 2013, and then he was effectively done in the league. 

 

But there are far worse picks than Spiller. Players that did absolutely nothing as first round picks. Maybin, Flowers, McCargo...I mean that 2012 season would be like one of those players getting 15 sacks or something

Edited April 20, 2020 by matter2003

[RobbRiddick]

Maybin has to be the worst. He literally did nothing. Not one thing, other than a cool haircut. At least Losman had one pretty good year. Maybin was like throwing the pick straight into the toilet 

[MJS]

22 minutes ago, NewEra said:

@MJS just wondering why you’re so confused?

 

best- kyle

 

then there was a joke.  

 

worst-  maybin

worst honorable mention- Mike williams

I misunderstood your joke, I suppose. Reaction removed.

Edited April 20, 2020 by MJS

[Orlando Tim]

11 hours ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

Best pick - Kyle Williams. Bills Wall of Famer in the 5th Round and spent 13 years  in Buffalo? Pretty good. 

 

Worst Pick - I don’t see how it can be anybody other than Maybin. Zero sacks with the Bills, by the second/third week of Training Camp you could sense he was a problem (arguing with Wood, getting mauled in practice). 
 

 

With worst is Maybin or Mike Williams and no one else is even in the discussion. How do you compare the negative worth of each player in simply taking a roster spot?