Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon beane made two selection on Day 2 of the 2021 NFL Draft, one in the second and third round.
Wake Forest defensive end Carlos Basham Jr. was selected by the Bills in the second round, while offensive tackle Spencer Brown was selected by the Bills out of Northern Iowa.
Beane revealed that Basham Jr. was a player that the Bills held in high regard. The Bills thought so highly of Basham Jr. that if he was still on the board when the 61st overall pick rolled around, the Bills would not go through with a trade down the draft board in order to select the edge rusher.
“I kept thinking he was going to get picked,” Beane said following Day 2 of the NFL Draft. “We had a deal agreed to with an NFC club. We told them if one player was there, which was Basham Jr, that we weren’t going to do the deal. ... It would’ve moved us back into the third round and added some other picks. We felt like we were in a good spot.”
With Basham Jr. and Greg Rousseau entering the fold at defensive end within the span of 24 hours, it gives the Bills nine defensive ends on the roster. Beane said the selections of Rousseau and Basham Jr. give the Bills great competition.
“We try to set ourselves up so that we’re not short at any position that we have to get it in Rounds 2 or 3,” Beane said. “You just take good players and the rest of that will handle itself. ... We like the front that we have, we think it’ll bring out the best in everybody.”
With the 93rd overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, Beane and the Bills addressed the offensive line with the selection of Brown. While Brown didn’t play in the 2020 season due to the postponement of the FCS season, Beane shared that Brown has spent months working with ex-San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Joe Staley leading up the the Senior Bowl.
“He went and trained with Joe Staley,” Brown said. “He didn’t just sit home. He hired an agent and worked with him all through the fall. He got himself ready [for the Senior Bowl]. ... He took the opportunity, and he met the competition. He caught our eye at the Senior Bowl.”
You can listen to Brandon Beane’s entire post-Day 2 conference call with the media below: