ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) 鈥� After spending Day 1 of the NFL draft adding picks and improving Buffalo鈥檚 draft positioning, Bills general manager Brandon Beane spent Friday finally adding players.
And the first priority was that鈥檚 transitioning to a 3-4 scheme under new coach Joe Brady and defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard.
Buffalo opened its draft by using the 35th selection to pick Clemson linebacker T.J. Parker. The Bills then traded up four spots 鈥� sending the No. 182 pick to Denver 鈥� to select Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun at No. 62.
At 6-foot-3 and 263 pounds, Parker was a three-year defensive linemen for the Tigers and will make the switch to outside linebacker in Buffalo. He鈥檚 projected to be part of a rotation playing behind Greg Rousseau and free-agent addition Bradley Chubb.
At 6-foot-2 and 189 pounds, Igbinosun was a three-year starter at Ohio State, after transferring from Mississippi. Though the Bills have two returning starters in Christian Benford and Maxwell Hairston, Beane said he鈥檚 learned teams can鈥檛 have enough cornerback depth because of injuries.
The Bills would not have been in position to add Igbinosun if not for the work Beane did a day earlier . The deals also improved Buffalo鈥檚 draft positioning by giving the team five of the first 126 picks, after initially entering the draft with two over that span.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e giving yourself a chance at better players that you have on your board, guys that you value the most,鈥� Beane said. 鈥淲hat we did yesterday allowed us to be more aggressive and take the sixth-round pick we had today to go secure a corner.鈥�
The Bills are retooling on the fly while remaining competitive after to take over as head coach in January after Sean McDermott was fired following nine seasons. Buffalo is on a seven-year playoff run while failing to reach the Super Bowl.
The defense, which was McDermott’s specialty, has taken much of the blame for the team’s playoff shortcomings.
The Josh Allen-led offense, meantime, was mostly returning intact. And Buffalo had already spent a draft asset in trading a second-round pick to .
Entering the draft with the 26th pick, Beane was already leaning toward trading down in noting the team鈥檚 draft board had fewer than 26 players with first-round grades.
鈥淥nce we saw the last player come off our board that we had a first-round grade on, we started being more aggressive with the calls,鈥� Beane said. 鈥淲e worked hard to get this ammunition, and we still feel there is some pieces that we would like to add tomorrow that can help this team this year and going forward.鈥�
The Bills have six picks left and are scheduled to open Saturday with the first pick of the fourth round, 101st overall. Buffalo still has depth needs at defensive tackle, safety and receiver.
Parker is regarded as a hard-hitting tackler, who still needs to develop his pass-rushing technique. The 21-year-old does have versatility in showing a capability of dropping back into coverage.
He finished his college career with 41 1/2 tackles for a loss, 21 1/2 sacks and six forced fumbles over 39 games. Parker especially excelled in his sophomore season in which he had 19 1/2 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks and set the single-season record with six forced fumbles.
鈥淚鈥檓 a guy who鈥檚 gonna play with attitude, run to the ball, get there as fast as possible and put the pain on somebody,鈥� Parker said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e playing fast, physical football in this league, and I鈥檓 trying to bring the nasty to the defense.鈥�
Brady had previously said wanting what had been a so-called 鈥渂end-but-don鈥檛-break鈥� defense under McDermott to adopt a attacking style similar to his offense.
The 22-year-old Igbinosun had four interceptions and 22 pass breakups in 56 games with the Buckeyes. He was also a member of Ohio State鈥檚 2024 national championship team.
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