Bills trade quarterback, left tackle to set up huge trade up in the 2018 NFL Draft

The Buffalo Bills shipped quarterback Tyrod Taylor to the Cleveland Browns for the 65th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the top pick of the third round. That left Nathan Peterman as the only quarterback on the roster and signaled how Buffalo was intent on adding their quarterback of the future this offseason.

Their latest trade certainly tips off the team’s intention for how they plan on getting a quarterback on their roster.

Buffalo shipped their franchise left tackle Cordy Glenn to the Cincinnati Bengals and moved up from 21st overall to 12th overall in the draft, in addition to swapping a pair of late round selections.

It’s difficult to see the Bills current roster build enticing a veteran like the oft-injured Sam Bradford or the ready-to-cash-in Kirk Cousins. Buffalo seems intent on positioning themselves for a trade on draft day to move up into the top of the first round and draft their quarterback of the future.

Buffalo now owns the 12th, 22nd, 53rd, 56th, and 65th overall picks. The 12th and 22nd overall picks should be enough to move into the top five in an average draft, but with so many potential franchise quarterbacks in the draft and so many sellers at the top of the draft (the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants aren’t expected to draft a quarterback and the Cleveland Browns won’t draft two in the top four), the price is sure to fluctuate.

If Buffalo traded their quarterback and left tackle and don’t use the returned capital to select a quarterback in the draft, then the Bills are simply incompetent. They have no other option- and they’re in perfect position to get their first franchise quarterback since Jim Kelly.

Even if the Bills find their franchise quarterback, though, they are a few years away from competing with the New England Patriots in the AFC East as they will need their young quarterback to develop. That window of time might not align with the remainder of LeSean McCoy’s career, so who knows how this move will play out for the Bills franchise.

Bernd’s Side: The trade puts the Bills in a position to potentially select one of the top-tier quarterbacks in the upcoming draft. Whether this means Buffalo will indeed invest in one of the top four players at the position – USC’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Wyoming’s Josh Allen and Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield – remains to be seen but the pieces are in place for that to happen, all while the team created an additional $4.85 million in salary cap space.