These 2024 late-round draft picks could start for the Buffalo Bills as rookies

Choosing draft picks is of significant importance to every NFL team every year, but it had a primary consequence for the Buffalo Bills in the 2024 NFL Draft, given the team’s personnel turnover during the simultaneous offseason.

General manager Brandon Beane made a concerted effort to rejuvenate his team this spring, moving on from solid starters like Stefon Diggs, Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Tre’Davious White and Mitch Morse to not only open up long-term salary cap flexibility . , but also provide a greater number of snaps and opportunities for young players, both new and returning to the roster.

Buffalo is counting on its recently added youngsters, who came in the form of valuable free agents looking to flourish into larger roles and 10 picks in the 2024 draft, to contribute significantly to the 2024 season of the NFL – and deriving production from these additions is arguably the team’s only path to success. Having a franchise-altering quarterback can cover up a lot of flaws, but at several points in the 2024 season, inexperienced and unproven players will be asked to produce significantly.

Beane’s prowess throughout the 2024 draft has seemingly positioned the team well in that regard. All 10 players selected by Buffalo in the draft likely have a path to the roster, with second-round picks Keon Coleman and Cole Bishop possibly projecting as immediate starters at wide receiver and safety, respectively. One NFL Draft analyst even thinks Buffalo may have landed a few starters on the third day of the draft; On his recent list of 15 Day 3 picks who “could be in line to start” for their respective teams, NFL.com’s Chad Reuter identified running back Ray Davis and center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger as two players under the radar who could secure starting roles.

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Davis, the Bills’ fourth-round pick in the 2024 draft, is ranked as Reuters’ sixth-most likely pick to land a starting job on day three, with the analyst writing, “His strength through contact will be a good complement to James Cook’s cutting blow. style. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Davis start multiple games to set the tone in the running game and keep Cook fresh so he can explode for big plays more regularly.

Although several experts have projected Davis as a threat to the starting role in Buffalo’s backfield, Reuter’s projection of the former Kentucky Wildcat serving as an effective complement to James Cook and situational starter is perhaps more realistic. Big Davis will undoubtedly play a role, but Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady has a soft spot for Cook, allowing him to get about 20 touches per game after taking over as interim play-caller during the week. 11 from last season.

Van Pran-Granger’s path to the starting center job isn’t too difficult given the offseason departure of five-year starter Mitch Morse. The former Georgia Bulldog started more than 40 games throughout his college career, an attribute that lands the center at $10 trillion on Reuters’ list.

“Connor McGovern is poised to move to center after Mitch Morse was released this offseason, and with Ryan Bates sent to Chicago in March, the Bills’ interior depth is limited,” Reuter wrote. “Van Pran-Granger was a mainstay for three seasons at Georgia, so he has the game to take a starting spot if needed due to injuries or ineffectiveness of veterans ahead of him on the depth chart.”

As Reuter notes, Connor McGovern, who started all 17 games for the Bills at left guard last season, is expected to move to center in 2024, with David Edwards likely taking the vacated spot to his left. If Buffalo hopes to fill the void left by Morse without creating another one, one could easily imagine Van Pran-Granger joining immediately; the only other center on the team’s depth chart is veteran journeyman Will Clapp.

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Regardless of immediate starting aspirations, Van Pran-Granger should at least provide valuable depth in his rookie season. Although several prognosticators have projected him solely as a center at the pro level, Beane said in a recent team YouTube video that the Bills will lock him up this summer.

While not mentioned by Reuters or necessarily a departure threat, Buffalo made several other high-value selections on the third day of this year’s draft, namely Washington linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio, Troy pass rusher Javon Solomon and Penn State nickel corner Daequan Hardy. Ulofoshio projects as a deep linebacker and immediate special teams contributor, while Solomon will likely immediately factor into the team’s defensive line rotation. Hardy is likely in line to return punts for the team.

Beane needed to call upon his multitude of picks in the 2024 draft for his team to continue to match its recent success, and it appears, at least initially, that he has succeeded. The Buffalo faithful will get their first look at the team’s rookie class at minicamp later this week.