Opinion: Christian Benford is an FCS darts thrower for the Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills held on to their second of three sixth-round picks to select Villanova corner Christian Benford at pick 185 of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Benford is a small school product from the FCS. He posted 18 pass breakups and seven interceptions in 2021. He lacks top speed (4.52 on his pro day), but he had solid explosive numbers (35″ vertical and 10’4″ jumping wide) . Benford is a towering presence at 6’0″ and 208 pounds. He’s a relatively unknown commodity, but the NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah ranked him among his top 150 prospects (145) throughout the draft.
A long time NFL.com Project analyst Lance Zierlein shared his thoughts on Benford’s prospects.
Buffaloe just took Villanova cornerback Christian Benford and he was on my late-round valuable photo list. He’s not the fastest guy, but he has good size and really great ball skills. It just needs the right scheme.
—Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) April 30, 2022
The Bills weren’t afraid to draft corners that didn’t have top speed. Beane, like many fans, knew the team needed extra cornering depth in this class. After picking Kaiir Elam as a potential first-round starter, they get a physically imposing presence with impressive ball skills in Benford at the end of the draft. It’s a potential throw of the darts for Brandon Beane as he searches for some rough diamonds who might have a chance to compete for a spot on the final 53-man roster. Beane is sure to love his tackling ability and the potential to take the football away. Watch the Bills consider coaching Benford to safety, where he’s getting closer to the athletic prototype.
Benford will certainly be one to watch once camp kicks off this summer.