As Bills GM Brandon Beane spoke to the media at the end of the second night of the 2025 NFL Draft, he couldn’t hide his excitement. With two selections on the night, he had successfully bolstered Buffalo’s defensive line.
Originally, the two picks were only six spots apart, at 56 and 62 in the second round. However, Beane, eager to secure one of the top pass-rushing defensive tackles still available, made a move. He traded up 15 spots from 56 to 41 with the Chicago Bears to select dynamic interior pass rusher from South Carolina.
“Any pass rusher is valuable, but an inside rush is especially important,” Beane said. “Looking at our board, we had a high grade on him and thought he might not make it to us. So, we started exploring options and thought moving up to 41 was the right move, ensuring we didn’t go too far and still kept our third-round pick.”
The move to trade up to pick 41 cost Buffalo both of their second-round selections (56 and 62), but they received a third-round pick at 72 and a seventh-round pick at 240 in return. The decision proved wise, as the next few teams after Buffalo selected Sanders went on to pick three defensive linemen within the next four picks. Rather than waiting for the defensive linemen run to start, the Bills took the initiative to begin it themselves.
“You try to do research, check around,” Beane said about the strategic move. “We had a feeling some of those players would go early, and they did. They weren’t defensive linemen, but we knew eventually the focus would shift back to that position. And with an inside rusher like Sanders, we didn’t think he’d last much longer.”
Buffalo had a strong evaluation of Sanders, who is relatively new to football. He started playing the sport only in his junior year of high school, with basketball being his main focus at the time, where he was an All-State talent.
“We liked the idea of adding another inside rusher, someone to pair with Ed (Oliver) on passing downs,” Beane added.