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If we learned nothing else in Doug Whaley's first full year as the general manager of the Buffalo Bills, it was that he loved trading draft picks. Confused about when Buffalo will be drafting in a few months? Here, we'll break down which picks Buffalo ended up with in 2015, and the trades that got them there.
The exact order of the picks won't be finalized until compensatory picks have been assigned, but barring another trade, Buffalo should not be expected to gain or lose any additional picks in the 2015 draft. They shouldn't expect to receive any compensatory pick this year, after signing several free agents in the 2014 offseason.
Buffalo Bills' 2015 NFL Draft picks
Round 1 pick
- Traded to Cleveland in the Sammy Watkins deal
Round 2 pick
Round 3 pick
Round 4 pick
- Acquired from San Francisco in the Stevie Johnson trade
- Traded to Philadelphia in the Bryce Brown trade
Round 4 pick
- Traded to Cleveland in the Watkins trade
Round 5 pick
- Acquired from Tampa Bay in 2014 draft-day trade down
Round 5 pick
Round 6 pick
Round 7 pick
Official pick numbers after the third round aren't finalized until compensatory picks are rewarded. The Bills' second-round pick is currently No. 50 overall.
Sammy Watkins trade
At the beginning of the 2014 NFL Draft, the Bills put together a blockbuster trade with the Browns. In exchange for the fourth overall pick in the draft, which they used to select Watkins, the Bills gave Cleveland the ninth overall pick in 2014, their first-round pick in 2015, and their fourth-round pick in 2015.
Stevie Johnson trade
After acquiring their new No. 1 receiver, the Bills were looking at a logjam with their receiving corps, and they shipped out Johnson to make room. At the end of the season, Johnson failed to reach the milestones that would have upgraded this pick, and so the Bills received a fourth-round pick from San Francisco as a result.
Bryce Brown trade
Later that same day, the Bills put together a trade for Brown, the athletic but underutilized running back in Philadelphia. Like Johnson, Brown failed to reach milestones that would have yielded Philly a higher pick, and as a result, the Bills will be sending the fourth round-pick which they received from San Francisco to Philadelphia.
Tampa Bay trade
Not yet finished, on the last day of the draft, Whaley put together one more trade. Just before drafting Cyril Richardson, Whaley traded away Buffalo's first pick in the fifth round in exchange for a 2014 seventh-round pick, and a fifth round pick in 2015.
What about Mike Williams?
Just to be clear, the aforementioned Tampa Bay trade had nothing to do with Buffalo's trade to acquire Mike Williams. That trade cost the team a sixth-round pick in 2014, and doesn't have any effect on the team's picks in 2015.