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The Buffalo Bills are being projected to make a big draft day move for the 2026 NFL draft, and this one would shake things up.
The Buffalo Bills are coming up on the 2026 NFL draft, which is set to take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from April 23 to 25. The team’s first pick is No. 26, but one NFL analyst and expert thinks that Bills will actually trade away that pick to let an AFC team snag their quarterback of the future.
The Buffalo Bills have their franchise quarterback in Josh Allen, who is such a key part of the team that he was even in on interviews for their new head coach. The Bills ended up going with Joe Brady, and Allen described the experience of being involved as “cool.”
“I’m sitting in these interviews, and I’m not the one making the decision, right? I’m there to, to inquire, to learn, to bring a different perspective to the decision makers that were in that room and taking the personal side out of it and taking the emotion out of it and trying to look at it from a logical lens,” Allen told reporters when Brady was hired. “It was a unique perspective; it was a cool learning experience for me; I’m very fortunate to be regarded to being wanted in that room.”
Allen added, “I’m very thankful that my input at least is heard and whether they used anything that I had to say in their decision making or not, it’s just cool to be in that room.”
But, not every franchise is so lucky. Now, the Buffalo Bills are being predicted to be part of a major NFL draft trade to help get one struggling franchise their quarterback of the future.
Buffalo Bills May Make a Trade With the Arizona Cardinals
In a Friday, March 27 feature for the NFL’s official website, Mike Brand gives his take on what will go down during the draft.
“For this projection, I weighed post-free agency needs, scheme fits, front-office tendencies, prospect-team connections and market clues across all 32 clubs,” he states in the piece. As for methodology, Brand states, “NFL IQ powered by Amazon Quick helped me pressure-test team needs, draft capital and realistic outcomes before putting this mock together.”
He sees the Bills trading their No. 26 pick to the Arizona Cardinals to land them quarterback Ty Simpson out of Alabama.
“After moving on from Kyler Murray, Arizona has Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew atop the quarterback depth chart,” he states in the piece. “Translation: The Cardinals are firmly in the market for a quarterback of the future.” Brand adds that “a move back into Round 1 for Simpson would align with the growing smoke around his fit in Mike LaFleur’s offense, giving the Cards a play-action-friendly passer they can develop behind a veteran bridge.”
What Makes the Buffalo Bills a Candidate for This Move
So, what makes the Bills the right fit for this trade? He says that “the Bills are strong trade-down candidates, as they don’t have a second-round pick and rank 27th in draft capital over the next two years, according to NFL IQ.”
So, it would be pretty wild to see the Bills trade away their first-rounder, but stranger things have happened in the NFL. If it happens, remember that Brand told you first.
Anne Erickson is an award-winning reporter for Heavy Sports covering the NFL, NBA and college football. Anne Erickson has years of experience covering the NFL and additional sports, and her work has been published via ESPN, Fox Sports and more. She has interviewed some of the biggest names in sports, including Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Erickson also hosts several podcasts and is a Detroit-based radio host. More about Anne Erickson
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