Getty Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins at Paycor Stadium on December 16, 2023.
The Buffalo Bills kept fans waiting on Day 1 of the NFL Draft, but one insider suggested they could provide a big payoff sometime on the second day.
The Bills traded back twice in the first round of the draft on April 25, first jumping from their No. 28 spot to No. 32 and then again back to No. 33, one spot into the second round. Though the Bills left Day 1 without taking a player, one NFL scout told ESPN’s Matt Miller that the moves may have given general manager Brandon Beane the ammunition to target an established wide receiver in a trade, like Cincinnati Bengals star Tee Higgins.
Text from a non-Bills scout:
“Trading back to 33 (for Buffalo) is super smart. Now they have all day tomorrow to try and trade for Tee Higgins or one of the 49ers wideouts”
Bills Could Add to Wide Receiver Room
The Bills went into the draft with a hole in their wide receiver room after a trade shipped Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans and No. 2 receiver Gabe Davis left in free agency. Many analysts expected the Bills to use their first-round pick on a wide receiver, but they opted to jump back instead and accumulate more later-round picks.
The price could be right for the Bills to land Higgins. Bleacher Report’s Alex Key suggested in an April 8 story that the Bills could target Higgins in exchange for a 2025 second-round pick and a 2024 fifth-round pick.
“We stuck to our board and took the best deal for us.”
Why Brandon Beane prioritized value in his decision to trade out of the first round last night: t.co/rm3CG1rEBX
Kay suggested that the Bills could still add rookie wide receivers through the draft, but Higgins could be a more veteran addition.
“Trading for Higgins alone may not be enough to keep Buffalo’s passing attack among the league’s best, but it would be a great start,” Kay wrote. “He would be a sure thing for star quarterback Josh Allen to rely on while the offense works to integrate any rookies.”
The Bills could also hold onto the pick and take a wide receiver. Buffalo News reporter Ryan O’Halloran suggested that Georgia receiver Ladd McConkey could be “instantly deployed by offensive coordinator Joe Brady” if he were still available at the team’s first-round pick. McConkey remains on the board for the Bills with the No. 33 pick to start the second round.
O’Halloran suggested that McConkey could play as a slot receiver or inside-outside receiver in 2025.
Bengals Receiver Wants Trade
Higgins has been in a precarious position with the Bengals. The receiver is playing the 2024 season under the franchise tag that will pay him close to $22 million, but has requested a trade as talks on a contract extension have not progressed.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that his trade demand remains in place, with no progress toward a long-term deal.
“Bengals franchise WR Tee Higgins also has requested to be traded being that there have been no contract talks with the team now in over a year,” Schefter wrote in a post on X.
Despite the impasse, Higgins said he does not foresee playing for another team in 2024.
“We’ll see. I do anticipate (playing for the Bengals in 2024),” Higgins said, via Fox19. “I’ve grown a love for Cincy that I didn’t think I would. Looking forward to it.”
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NFL Scout Suggests Bills Could Target $22 Million Bengals WR in Trade