Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane and his front office team have become known for doing their pre-draft homework on NFL prospects.
Beane has also become known for his maneuvering on NFL Draft days.
Both elements came into play on the first day of the draft, with a move to leapfrog multiple corner-needy teams to get his man
As the Bills sat waiting at number 25 overall, a player whom he deemed as a not only a good fit for the team but also the last one for whom he had a first-round grade was still on the board. That player was Florida CB Kaiir Elam.
The GM decided they would wait no longer.
He swapped the first-round spot at 25th overall and the 130th overall pick the Bills had in the fourth round with the Baltimore Ravens for the 23rd pick to take the corner.
Why the move up?
“We had a good grade on Kaiir and we were down to one player in the first round on our board,” Beane said while addressing the media after the pick. “At that point it just made sense.”
Moving up to take players that fit has become somewhat of a regular part of Beane’s repertoire as Buffalo’s general manager.
“It just felt like it was within striking distance,” the GM added. “And obviously, I’ve been hearing it loud and clear ‘we don’t have corners’ from every single one of you, neighbors, kids, everyone. So we’ll all sleep good tonight that we added a corner.”
Elam’s experience at the collegiate level was also a factor in the GM’s evaluation of him.
“He plays in the SEC, which you know is the closest thing to our level,” Beane added. “He’s gone against some top-tier talent in his career, guys that have already been drafted a year ago. We think he’s got a high ceiling. He’s a younger player. So, we just feel like he’s got a lot of things that he does well. He’s a bigger, longer guy. He’s got speed to carry the vertical. Some guys that are running high 4-5s struggle – they’re good in the shorter area, but they struggle the more the receivers get downfield. We think he can do that.”
“His tackling at times was a little bit shaky. We talked to him about it, and part of it, he felt was the way they were asking him to do. So he’ll have to – there are some things technique-wise that we’ll have him work on and clean up. But he’s a great young man. I think he’ll fit our DNA, fit our culture.”
Beane also noted the impression that was made during Elam’s pre-draft visit to One Bills Drive as a top-30 draft prospect as an influential factor in the decision.
“He was impressive,” Beane said. “That really kind of sealed the fate of ‘this guy would fit us if it worked out.”
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