With the Senior Bowl in the rearview mirror, NFL draft season is officially heating up-and in Buffalo, the spotlight is squarely on wide receivers. After a season that exposed a glaring need for consistent production on the outside, the Bills head into the 2026 NFL Draft looking for more than just depth.
They need a difference-maker. And while they’ll be picking at No. 26 in the first round, Senior Bowl week may have offered a glimpse of a potential solution.
Enter Malachi Fields.
The Notre Dame wideout made the most of his time in Mobile, putting together the kind of week that turns heads and shifts draft boards. Fields, a prototypical “X” receiver with size, physicality, and polish, showed off the full arsenal during practices-crisp route-running, strong hands in contested situations, and the kind of separation that doesn’t always show up on a stopwatch but matters when the pads are on.
He’s not a burner, and that’s okay. Fields wins in other ways-ways that translate to Sundays.
He’s a technician with the frame to outmuscle corners and the footwork to create space when it counts. That’s the kind of skill set that fits what Buffalo needs right now: a reliable target who can win one-on-one and give Josh Allen a trustworthy option outside the numbers.
Several analysts have started pairing Fields with the Bills in early mock drafts, and it’s easy to see why. The fit makes sense.
Buffalo’s offense has plenty of speed and versatility, but it’s been missing that steady outside presence since the departure of Stefon Diggs. Fields may not be a clone of Diggs, but his physical tools and football IQ suggest he could step into a significant role early.
Of course, selecting another big-bodied receiver could raise some eyebrows, especially with Keon Coleman still finding his footing. Drafted 33rd overall in 2024, Coleman was supposed to be that guy-the physical mismatch who could grow into a WR1.
But two seasons in, the results have been mixed. That doesn’t mean the book is closed on Coleman, but it does raise the stakes for whoever the Bills bring in next.
And here’s the thing: there’s no rule that says you can’t have two physical receivers on the roster. In fact, in today’s NFL, where defensive backs are faster and schemes more complex, having multiple wideouts who can win with strength and precision is a luxury most teams would love to have. Fields, who notched five touchdowns in each of his last three seasons at Notre Dame, has shown he can be that kind of player.
Buffalo’s front office knows what’s at stake. With Josh Allen in his prime and the AFC only getting more competitive, every draft pick matters-especially at the skill positions.
The Bills don’t just need bodies in the receiver room. They need playmakers.
And based on what we saw in Mobile, Malachi Fields might be exactly that.
As draft season unfolds and the board starts to take shape, expect Bills fans to keep a close eye on the wide receiver class. But if Fields continues to build on his Senior Bowl momentum, he could be the name circled in red when Buffalo is on the clock.