Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - With their first-round selection in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills chose a player I'm sure they are hoping will be the opening day starter at cornerback opposite Christian Benford.
Maxwell Hairston was a starting corner the last two years for the University of Kentucky. The 5-foot-11, 183-pound native of West Bloomfield, Michigan was named All-Southeastern Conference for both seasons.
Hairston played in 32 games for the Wildcats, 20 of which were starts. He totaled six interceptions and returned three of those for touchdowns.
What stands out with Hairston is his blazing speed, running a 4.28 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, the fastest time for any cornerback in this year's draft class. It is also the fastest 40-time of any player the Bills have drafted in their history.
The 21-years-old played a mix of man-to-man and zone coverage at Kentucky, where he was utilized as the field corner. Back in 2023, one of his Kentucky teammates was Ray Davis, a running back who was drafted by the Bills last year.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane said the team liked Hairston's aggressive play, and how he attacked the ball. In addition to that rare speed, which Beane pointed out the Bills don't currently have in the defensive backs room, his ball skills impressed the Bills' brain trust as well.
They also loved his infectious personality, which reminded the Bills of current cornerback and 2017 first-round pick Tre'Davious White.
Speaking of White, who recently re-signed with the Bills as a free agent, you can bet one of his jobs will be to teach Hairston the tricks of the trade. If Hairston isn't ready for Week 1, the starting job could go to White, Dane Jackson or Ja'Marcus Ingram.
But it isn't a large ask to have a first-round corner start right away. (Yes, I know the Kaiir Elam selection never worked out).
Related
Scouting reports of the Bills' picks are provided by Joe Marino, who does draft analysis for WGR. Marino also hosts the "Locked On Bills" podcast, as well as the "Locked on NFL Scouting" and "NFL First Read" podcasts.
Marino has also authored two books about the Bills: "Go Bills!" and "Buffalo's Run". You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TheJoeMarino.
Here is what Marino has to say about Hairston:
Positives:
Maxwell Hairston is an aggressive football player that hunts the ball. Thrives in zone coverage, where he's able to play with vision on the quarterback, and drive on the football. He's not just a ball hawk that is irresponsible.
He also has a very good comfort for route combinations, how to squeeze routes, how to layer coverage and how to space the field.
Primarily at Kentucky, they ran zone defense, so you get a lot of exposure to zone, but he's got all the traits necessary to be a good man corner, as well with unbelievable speed, quick feet, and fluid hips, he can really mirror and match any route.
Not a lot of NFL teams are going to have this type of player defensively that can handle the speed receivers that exist in the NFL. He can certainly neutralize those matchups with his ability to stay in phase as he pattern matches down the field.
For his size, I think he's a very physical player. The Bills didn't draft him to come in and be this dynamic tackler, but he's very willing. Does he come up empty on some tackles? Yes, but he's a very willing player. He never backs down from being physical and just basically a guy that hunts the football and has that mentality that he wants to take away the ball.
Concerns:
He's a bit undersized, as he measured 183 pounds at the combine. All reports are that he's over 190 pounds now, which I think is necessary for his style of play. When you're going to be aggressive and physical, you'd like to have some mass with it. He's got to put on that mass to make sure that there aren't tackling and run defense concerns.
I would say there is a bit of a risk/reward element to his game, where he is very aggressive. You have to live with some of the consequences of that. He's going to give up some plays because he wants to bait a throw or be very aggressive with a run fit, and he might run himself out of his fit because he's trying to make a play.
He is a little bit smaller, so if he's going up against bigger body receivers and they're challenging him on back shoulder throws or spot throws down the field, he has to work overtime to not get bumped at the catch point and win those leverage battles down the field.
That might be a challenge for him at the next level, going up against bigger body guys that they want to throw those 50-50 balls to.
All Bills rookies will be in town for a minicamp May 9-11.