The Buffalo Bills immediately got to work on the final day of the 2026 NFL Draft. Kicking things off by getting some more protection for Josh Allen, but the fun didn’t end there. Here is our recap and grades for the third and final day of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Buffalo Bills didn’t have any first-round selections after trading away three times. They continued the fun in the second round with even more trades.
General manager Brandon Beane got plenty of draft ammunition for day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft, and Buffalo walked away a better team because of it. With plenty of team needs and plenty of draft selections to boot, Beane and the front office got to work.
Here are our grades for the final day of the 2026 NFL Draft. Let us know in the comments whether you agree or disagree with our rankings from one of the most important weekends in all of sports. For us, Beane and company took care of business in a big way
The Buffalo Bills moved down one spot in exchange for a 2027 seventh-round pick. Brandon Beane worked his magic yet again, all while not sacrificing the future. With the selection, Buffalo took Judge Bowry, a swing tackle from Boston College. It’s a big win from a depth perspective, and he’s a dream both on and off the field. Lowry is a huge pickup for Buffalo, and could be a key piece in protecting Josh Allen for years to come.
A to Z Sports analysis: 6’5″ 314-lb LT. Zero sacks allowed on 311 pass-block snaps in 2025. Blend of mobility, anchor strength, toughness. Multi-year starter, 2025 team captain. Must improve dealing with power at point of attack. Inconsistent run-blocking technique. Senior Bowl invite.
Grade:B
More weapons for quarterback Josh Allen is never a bad thing. Buffalo got their guy with Bell in the fourth-round of the 2026 NFL Draft. We had him projected to be their third-round pick, so this was quite a steal from Beane and company. He was projected to be around the 88th overall selection, so Buffalo getting him at No. 125 was huge. Bell immediately comes in and will be expected to make an impact. After Allen had to throw to players like Mecole Hardman in the divisional playoffs, that changes with the selection of Bell. He’s a dynamic playmaker and Bills Mafia should be thrilled with the selection.
A to Z Sports analysis: Explosive receiver with 101 catches, 1,278 yards, and 13 TDs in his final season. Elite after-catch ability and sharp route-running. Average play strength and press-coverage vulnerability create consistency concerns.
Skyler Bell absolutely oblitered the sorry competition he played at UConn over the last two seasons. He racked up over 2,000 yards and 18 touchdowns in his final seasons combined, showing great versatility and efficiency. Bell started his career rather slowly, mostly underwhelming at Wisconsin for three years. However, once he found an offense that properly utilized his speed, burst, and bounce, Bell thrived. He’s a bit undersized, but he has far better athleticism than most non-power conference wide receivers.
Travis May
A to Z Sports
Grade:A
The Buffalo Bills needed a linebacker, and they waited until the fourth-round to go get their guy. He was a 2025 First Team All-Big 12 player and had 130 tackles which was the most in the Big 12. He’s got great instincts and great speed to track plays from sideline to sideline. One of the weak points is his aggressiveness at the point of attack. He’s a former Cal linebacker who transferred to TCU and showed plenty of closing speed. Had four career sacks for TCU and ran a 4.47 at the NFL Combine. A great player at this stage of the draft. Whenever Buffalo addresses major team needs, it’s a win in our book.
A to Z Sports analysis: TCU LB. 130 tackles (led Big 12), 11 TFL, 4 sacks in 2025. 4.47 forty, 9.71 RAS. Elite athleticism with strong zone recognition. Downhill aggression fills run lanes. Stiff lower half limits man coverage. Loses track of blocking schemes. First-Team All-Big 12.
TCU linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr is a redshirt senior transfer from the Cal program. He’s an electric athlete and plays with a frenzied effort that is easy to love on tape. If you love downhill fitting linebackers who crash gaps and play with aggressive violence, Elarms-Orr is going to be someone you like. He’s fast to shoot into the backfield, as evidenced by his whopping 11 tackles for loss in 2025 with the Horned Frogs. He posted electric testing numbers with a 4.47s 40-yard dash and a 40″ vertical jump at 234 pounds. In all, Elarms-Orr projects as a viable NFL starter, especially after his full breakout season in 2025. Look for him to carve out a special teams role and potentially compete for playing time as a WILL linebacker.
Kyle Crabbs
A to Z Sports
Grade:A
The Buffalo Bills added another chess piece to Jim Leonhard’s defense. Kilgore had 16 pass break ups in the last two seasons and was a second-team All-SEC selection. He’s got all the measurables for an aggressive safety. He plays the hybrid position and will need to take all the athletic ability and transfer it into more consistent plays on the field. He can come down and set the edge, break on the football, and come up in some of the biggest moments. A huge win for Buffalo this late in the draft.
His consistency just isn’t there and he needs to tie it together at the NFL level. He has the atheltic ability to make it in this league, and could wind up being a steal for Buffalo in the fifth round. Expect him to push on players like Dee Alford since he plays the hybrid position that’s been vacated with the loss of Taron Johnson to the Las Vegas Raiders.
At the end of the day, Buffalo needed some depth at safety and got that with Kilgore.
A to Z Sports analysis: Impressive recruit with 178 tackles and 8 career INTs showing size and athleticism. Run defense calls the shots but technique inconsistent in man coverage. Deep recovery speed remains developmental.
Over the last couple of years, Kilgore has been an important member of the South Carolina secondary. He has manned the nickel position during that stretch, although his biggest upside on the NFL level is at safety. There is no questioning that Kilgore has some outstanding athletic traits, including long speed and explosiveness. There is just an odd overall fit in the slot, allowing too many easy completions with below average change of direction skills. There is also no telling exactly what Kilgore would look like working from depth due to lack of experience in the role, on top of hit or miss tackling in the open field. As of now, Kilgore is a much better athlete than football player.
Ryan Roberts
A to Z Sports
Grade:B+
The Buffalo Bills really nailed their day three selections, and the selection of Zane Durant with the final pick in the fifth-round was perfect proof of that. Another selection, another team need addressed. Heading into the day, Buffalo needed a linebacker and defensive tackle and Brandon Beane used his picks to do exactly that.
A to Z Sports highlighted him as an eventual good starter. He logged 40 starts over the past four seasons and was as reliable as they come. The thing with Durant is just that his flashes need to be more consistent. The team got much younger, once again, and was another really solid pickup by Brandon Beane and company.
A to Z Sports Analysis : Feisty 6’1″, 294-lb gap-shooter with impressive athleticism (4.75 forty is solid among DTs). Knifes into backfield but lacks length and frame for the point of attack. Poor finishing ability on tape.
Zane Durant was a four-year starter at Penn State. He logged 40 starts over the last four years. His best season came in 2024, when he set his career highs with 42 total tackles and 11 tackles for loss. This past year wasn't ideal with Penn State falling apart from top to bottom as a team. Even through it all, Durant found a way to set his career high with four sacks.
Durant is a bit smaller than you’d like to see from an interior defender. It doesn’t hurt his play strength, though, as he has powerful hands when fighting offensive linemen. Quick burst off the line that helps him collapse the pocket and prevent quarterbacks from stepping up when edge pressure comes. At the NFL level, he is best suited to be a three-tech, and his film over the past two years shows he has the potential to be a reliable three-down player. And he is definitely going to put the work in to accomplish just that.
Destin Adams
A to Z Sports
Grade:B+
More depth at cornerback is never a bad thing. It’s clear that general manager Brandon Beane doesn’t want a letdown like in the divisional round loss to the Denver Broncos where Dane Jackson had to come in for relief and was absolutely cooked.
Pride Jr. split his time between Clemson and Missouri. He played in 52 career games with 64 solo tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sakc, five interceptions, and 16 passes defensed. He didn’t miss a single game during his time at Missouri. He’s got wheels and hops, the secondary is getting entirely revamped with the selection. He’s a really good man coverage defender with exceptional acceleration.
Grade:B-
There’s going to be a punting competition in Buffalo. Tommy Doman was the 239th overall pick by the Buffalo Bills in the 2026 NFL Draft. While the team has Mitch Wishnowsky, it’s no guarantee that he’ll win the job, especially after Doman’s selection. Doman immediately comes in and could make an impact day one, as long as he wins the training camp battle. It’ll be a fun one to watch for sure.
Grade:B-
A to Z Sports has Reed-Adams as teh No. 163 prospect in the 2026 NFL Draft. A huge steal from Buffalo landing him with their final pick in the seventh round. They project him as an average backup or rotational player, and that’s exactly what Buffalo needs. The offensive line is pretty much set, but you can never have too much depth, especially when it’s all about protecting the franchise quarterback in Josh Allen.
A to Z Sports Analysis: Second-team AP All-American guard. Excellent run blocker who drives defenders back with brawling style. Stock dropped after meaningful regression in pass protection. Versatility across interior helps evaluation.
One of four Aggies' offensive linemen available in this draft class, Ar'maj Reed-Adams is a stout boulder on the inside. His good play strength and anchor make him a chore to get through, and he uses his massive wingspan to engulf defenders at the point of attack. Coaches raved about his character as a team captain and leader for the Aggies. He's an experienced, versatile lineman, with over 50 games played under his belt and starts at both guard spots and at tackle. However, he simply isn't a good enough athlete to be an NFL starter, and his weight has been difficult to contain. He can use his length to keep rushers out of his chest, but his hand placement needs to be more consistent to maximize his enormous length. There's enough to work with as a run blocker to make him stick on a roster with his intangibles and versatility, but he needs to land in the right environment to unlock more than that.
AJ Schulte
A to Z Sports
Grade:C
