Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach seems to have played his cards just right during the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Some were a little surprised to see the team move up for cornerback Trent McDuffie in the first round. However, some behind-the-scenes video from a bitter AFC rival makes it look like it was absolutely the right decision to move up and go get their guy.
The Bills released an interesting behind-the-scenes video from their draft day war-room, which provided some insight into the first round. After an early run on the cornerback position, Buffalo GM Brandon Beane knew they were going to need to trade up from No. 25.
“Cornerback was one of the positions that we’d hoped to address in the first few rounds,” Beane said. “(Derek Stingley Jr. and Ahmad Gardner) went three and four and I was like, ‘Man, we’re going to be trading out probably.'”
They were calling around with a few teams including the Green Bay Packers at pick No. 22 about making a trade-up, potentially with their eyes on a falling Trent McDuffie. When the news came up that the Patriots were trading back with the Chiefs, the Buffalo war room started bustling. Bills Assistant Director of Player Personnel Terrance Gray whispered what it appeared everyone was thinking: “They traded up in front of us.”
Now, we’ll never know if the Bills would have actually taken McDuffie over Kaiir Elam — who they ended up trading up with the Ravens to acquire. However, based on what Beane and Brett Veach have said about the situation, it seems pretty likely that would’ve been the case.
“Obviously (Derek) Stingley (Jr. to Houston) and (Ahmad) ‘Sauce’ (Gardner to New York Jets) went high and we had a grouping of corners there,” Veach said following the first round. “Knowing some of the team needs that were directly in front of us – and then I believe Buffalo then did take a corner shortly after and I think they traded up a spot, too. We knew that was coming and we had called teams, I believe the pick before and the pick after the New England trade, just to put ourselves in the position. With the way the board was falling, knowing that we’re picking really late in the draft, the odds of a guy like McDuffie being at 21, let alone 29 were very low. We just felt like it was the right time to make a move.” [Reply]
Originally Posted by Coochie liquor:
They were calling around with a few teams including the Green Bay Packers at pick No. 22 about making a trade-up, potentially with their eyes on a falling Trent McDuffie. When the news came up that the Patriots were trading back with the Chiefs, the Buffalo war room started bustling. Bills Assistant Director of Player Personnel Terrance Gray whispered what it appeared everyone was thinking: “They traded up in front of us.”
Now, we’ll never know if the Bills would have actually taken McDuffie over Kaiir Elam — who they ended up trading up with the Ravens to acquire. However, based on what Beane and Brett Veach have said about the situation, it seems pretty likely that would’ve been the case.
“Obviously (Derek) Stingley (Jr. to Houston) and (Ahmad) ‘Sauce’ (Gardner to New York Jets) went high and we had a grouping of corners there,” Veach said following the first round. “Knowing some of the team needs that were directly in front of us – and then I believe Buffalo then did take a corner shortly after and I think they traded up a spot, too. We knew that was coming and we had called teams, I believe the pick before and the pick after the New England trade, just to put ourselves in the position. With the way the board was falling, knowing that we’re picking really late in the draft, the odds of a guy like McDuffie being at 21, let alone 29 were very low. We just felt like it was the right time to make a move.”
Ahh, so no one actually knows if they wanted the guy the Chiefs got.
They may have wanted Elam all along.
But if they did want your guy and didn’t end getting him because they sat on their hands, then good. Hope they learned a lesson.
Though it’s a lesson with a good ending because Elam is a stud too. [Reply]
