The Buffalo Bills kept swinging for more help around Josh Allen this offseason, but ESPN’s latest positional rankings say the picture still isn’t pretty.
Bill Barnwell slotted Buffalo’s running backs, wide receivers and tight ends at No. 29 in the NFL heading into the 2026 season, which is actually one spot worse than where the Bills landed in his rankings a year ago. That came despite Buffalo bringing back an All-Pro running back, a Pro Bowl tight end and trading for veteran wideout D.J. Moore.
Only the Carolina Panthers, Washington Commanders and Miami Dolphins were ranked below them.
James Cook was the one clear bright spot. He led the NFL with 1,621 rushing yards in 2025 and earned first-team All-Pro honors. Barnwell’s only real concern with Cook was the ball security issue, noting that he fumbled six times in the regular season and once more in the playoffs.
The receiving group drew the harshest review.
"Beyond Cook, it remains difficult to get excited about Buffalo's receiving corps, even after the addition of D.J. Moore," Barnwell wrote.
Moore is coming off the lowest receiving-yardage total of his career, and ESPN questioned whether the 29-year-old still belongs in the game-changing tier at wide receiver.
"He profiles as one of the least imposing top wideouts in the league."
Khalil Shakir was labeled a dependable slot option, while Keon Coleman "has been a major disappointment." Dalton Kincaid earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2025, but questions still linger about whether he can grow into the kind of high-volume mismatch Buffalo hoped it was getting when it used a first-round pick on him.
That all led to the same blunt bottom line.
"If Allen needs to throw for a first down to win a game, who should he trust to get open?"
"Every team ranked above the Bills has at least one receiver that fans would bring up as an obvious answer for their quarterback, Barnwell said. "The Bills still, somehow, do not."
In Other News...
Bills Roster Squeeze Could Put A Surprise Name On The Bubble
With training camp still ahead, the Bills are already facing the kind of roster math that comes with a new coaching staff and a few fresh personnel ideas. Two recent projections of the initial 53-man roster under Joe Brady and defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard show how much can shift when scheme changes meet a crowded depth chart, with familiar names, recent additions and special teams value all carrying extra weight as the team tries to sort out its first version of the roster.
The biggest intrigue is less about the obvious starters than the pressure points at the edges, where a couple of spots could swing on camp performance and how the staff wants to build the back end of the roster. Edge rusher, receiver and fullback all look unsettled, and even a return for Tre'Davious White is part of the conversation in one projection, which is a reminder that these early roster forecasts are really more about reading the tea leaves than making final calls. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Fans Have Every Right To Be Furious Over Christian Benford
Christian Benford has spent his Bills career doing the kind of work that usually earns trust inside a building, even if it does not always translate into national buzz. Since arriving as a 2022 draft pick, he has been a steady starter in Buffalos secondary, limiting damage and giving the defense a reliable presence on the outside. His numbers back up the eye test, too, from a career average of 10.8 yards per catch allowed to a 2025 season in which he held opposing quarterbacks to a career-best 54.4% completion rate.
Benfords production has already drawn some recognition, including Defensive Player of the Year votes in 2024, but the broader conversation still seems to lag behind what he has actually done. A big part of that is the way Buffalos defense is viewed as a whole, which can blur the work of players who consistently hold up their end. So when the leagues latest cornerback discussion came around, Bills fans had every reason to feel like one of their most dependable defenders was once again being treated like an afterthought. [Read more 🡒]
Bills May Have Found An Overlooked Answer For A Crucial Defensive Spot
Buffalos move from a 4-3 look to a 3-4 multiple defense under new coordinator Jim Leonhard has created a fresh opening in the middle of the field, and the Bills have already added a veteran body to help sort it out. The one-year signing gives the team another linebacker with experience in aggressive schemes, the kind of fit that can matter when a defense is being reshaped and every role has to be earned again.
The bigger question is whether he can do enough to stick once camp gets going. He is expected to compete for a rotational inside linebacker job while also helping on special teams, but he arrives with roster-bubble status and faces a crowded path as younger linebackers push for spots of their own. For Buffalo, the appeal is obvious: a low-cost chance to find a useful piece in a defense that is still being built on the fly. [Read more 🡒]