After trading down from No. 28 overall to No. 32 overall, and then again from No. 32 overall to No. 33 overall, the Buffalo Bills now hold the rights to an important piece of real estate. As teams re-gather themselves following the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft and re-stack their boards, they will set course on plans for Day 2. NFL Media is reporting that the Bills have received calls from teams exploring the idea of moving up.
Could Buffalo make their first pick of the event or will they trade down for a third time? Here are five players that could be targeted in a potential trade:
CB Cooper DeJean, Iowa
DeJean is still available because there are more questions about his ability to play cornerback than those taken before him at the position. DeJean is going to find a way onto the football field and he is going to fill his role at a high level. There comes a point in every draft when teams have to take good football players and hope that is works out. The point could be nearing with CBSSports.com's No. 25 overall prospect.
A year ago, Pittsburgh stayed put at No. 33 overall and took a Big Ten cornerback: Penn State's Joey Porter Jr.
CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama
McKinstry sat and watched as his teammate, cornerback Terrion Arnold, was picked late in the first round, wondering when his time would come. Once viewed as a top-10 overall prospect in this draft class, McKinstry has fallen down the board after a less than stellar closing season. He is a great player and a team getting him at this stage of the draft will get a Day 1 starter at a premium position. He is CBSSports.com's No. 29 overall player.
DT Johnny Newton, Illinois
So you want to apply pressure from the shortest path to the quarterback? Newton is your guy. Texas' Byron Murphy II was the first and only defensive lineman taken in this draft but teams solely looking for pass rush help from that role may find Newton more suitable. No one would have blinked if he had been taken in the first round but now CBSSports.com's No. 26 overall prospect represents great value on Day 2.
WR Adonai Mitchell, Texas
Mitchell is a vision rather than a finished product. There is room for growth as a player, which is simultaneously terrifying and exciting for NFL teams. If he reaches his full potential, Mitchell can be an impactful X-receiver at the next level. At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds with nearly 33-inch arm length, CBSSports.com's No. 27 overall prospect ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds. It could be argued that is more impressive than what his teammate, the NFL Combine's fastest man Xavier Worthy, was able to accomplish.
OT Kingsley Suamataia, BYU
As the driver of the Suamataia bandwagon, I had to pull over to type this section. When the dust settled, there were nine offensive linemen taken on the first night of the NFL Draft. Yet teams like the Patriots and Commanders still have a desperate need to find contributors at tackle. Supply may be dwindling, but demand certainly is not. Anyone familiar with the law of economics knows that creates a sellers market and, as noted in the intro, Buffalo is holding a valuable piece of real estate.
Coverage of Day 2 of the 2024 NFL Draft begins at 7 p.m. ET. Fans can follow along in our liveblog for up the minute news and reaction.
