Buffalo Bills 7-Round Mock Draft 2023

Welcome to the official Defiant Takes NFL Mock Draft 2023. In this 7-round mock draft preview, I will take you through my choices on the Buffalo Bills’ seven-round draft picks and who I believe they should take to make their team complete.

Here is the Buffalo Bills: 7 Round Team Mock Draft 2023 Class:

Buffalo Bills 2023 Draft Picks

• 1st Round – 27th Overall: Darnell Wright – OT (Tennessee)
• 2nd Round – 59th Overall: Jack Campbell – LB (Iowa)
• 3rd Round – 91st Overall: Trenton Simpson – LB (Clemson)
• 4th Round – 13oth Overall: Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson – CB (TCU)
• 5th Round – 137th Overall: Sean Tucker – RB (Syracuse)
• 6th Round – 205th Overall: Josh Whyle – TE (Cincinnati)
• 7th Round – no pick

Darnell Wright, OT – Tennessee

At 6’6″, 335 lbs., Wright is the perfect size for a prototypical right tackle and is a more natural right tackle in the NFL. Right now, the Bills have Spencer Brown who is a versatile swing tackle, but he is not a pure starter on the right. Drafting Wright at 27th fills an immediate starting spot on this side of the line.

He was a monster at Tennessee after four years as a “road grater” on a Tennessee o-line that slowly developed into one the country’s best in 2022.

Wright is also very athletic for a big man and has very quick feet to push defenders out of his way.

Look for him to be a day one starter at right tackle in the NFL.

Jack Campbell, LB – Iowa

For some strange reason, the draft network has Jack Campbell ranked at only number 55 as a draft prospect, but a lot of mocks have the now-former Iowa Linebacker going in the first round.

The 6’5″, 243 lb. linebacker is a big linebacker coming from a school that has found a way to produce NFL draft talent year after year while competing against Michigan and Ohio State in the Big Ten. Credit goes out to Coach Ferentz and his coaching staff.

Campbell has all the tools to be a starting MLB right away, as he is big, smart, and already has the skills needed to call out the plays. He also ran a 4.65 forty-yard dash, which is fast for a linebacker that big.

He is definitely a solid replacement for linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, who signed a four-year, $72 million deal with the Chicago Bears.

He was known as the heart and soul of the Iowa linebacking corps., calling out the signals on defense, which is why Bills head coach Sean McDermott knows he is a perfect fit for the Bills culture. He is a team player, a leader, and a great all-around person.

Look for Campbell to make an immediate impact on day one and wreck havoc in an NFL offenses’ backfield from the moment Week 1 of the regular season begins.

Trenton Simpson, LB – Clemson

If Jack Campbell is the heart and soul of a defense, Trenton Simpson is the thunder and lightning. Much like Iowa, Clemson is a program that just keeps churning out NFL defensive prospects, just like Elon Musk was churning out Teslas pre-Twitter Days.

It all started with former defensive coordinator and now Oklahoma Head Coach Brent Venables. It continues to this day with Dabo Swinney and Co.

There are many comparisons and contrasts between Campbell and Simpson.  The speedy linebackers are both fine young men, are both great interviewers, and are both versatile in rushing the passer and in coverage.

The difference is nobody has a natural speed that you can’t coach like Simpson had when he ran a whopping 4.43 forty-yard dash.

At 6’2″, 235 lbs., Campbell will surely wreak havoc, but Simpson will be in your backfield faster than you can count to five.

Simpson will also be a day-one starter, and with his speed, he will certainly be looking forward to earning the chance to putting Patrick Mahomes or Anthony Richardson on their backs during his rookie year.

The funny thing, is Anthony Richardson, who is also a rookie, ran a 4.43 just like Simpson, except he is a 6’4″, 244 lb. quarterback.

Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, CB – TCU

At 5’9″, 180 lbs, Hodges-Tomlinson plays a big game for a little corner. He won the Jim Thorpe Award last year for being the best defensive back in the NCAA. He also was a three-time all big 12 conference selection from 2020-2022 and was also a First Team All-American.

While it’s easy to say that he falls to the fourth round because of his height concerns, it’s also easy to say the Bills can select him here because his uncle is Hall of Fame running back LaDanian Tomlinson. He is building his own legacy with his own social media account.

Additionally, he was the best corner in college, and as the cliché goes, it’s a passing league, and you can never have enough corners, so why not take a guy with great bloodlines in the fourth round?

Sean Tucker, RB – Syracuse

This is more of a flier pick on a very talented player who could be the steal of this draft. At the beginning of the 2022 college football season, ESPN analyst Mel Kiper had the Cuse running back as one of the top 10 backs in the 2023 NFL draft.

That was before he kind of underachieved last year and before he announced he would skip his bowl game to declare for the NFL draft. Still, taking Tucker here would be great, as he was first-round value prior to an up-and-down 2022 season with inquiries.

At 5’10”, 210 lbs. Tucker is a very shifty back with the ability to run downhill and the ability to run inside and outside the holes. He also has the ability to run wide receiver routes and catch the ball out of the backfield, which running backs need to do now in today’s spread offenses.

If Tucker makes the Bills roster, look for him to be used on passing situations and even on kick returns along with Nyheim Hines.

Josh Whyle TE, Cincinnati

The last pick of the draft for the Bills would fill a need at TE. At 6’6″, 245 lbs. Whyle has been overlooked his entire football career. Only rated as a three or four-star recruit coming out of LaSalle High School, Whyle committed to the University of Cincinnati after holding more than 30 scholarship offers from Power Five schools like Wisconsin, Auburn, Georgia, and Tennessee.

His brand started to take off in 2020 when he became the team’s starter and was just a consistent pass-catching tight end and slowly started working on his talent as a blocker.

The talented tight end already has a natural size and is already consistent enough to catch enough passes as a rookie in the NFL.

He’s also versatile enough to block well too, and is steadily improving in that area. He also has natural speed, as Whyle ran a 4.69 forty-yard dash.

The only reason why Whyle is projected to be lower in the draft is because the underrated tight end isn’t fully developed as a blocker yet.

He doesn’t have the brand recognition or the school name like the other big-name tight ends do, but Whyle has just about as much consistent talent as the other tight ends do as well.

This pick for the Bills makes sense as he is talented but has been overlooked all his life, which fits the McDermott, Beane culture.

For another interesting NFL story, please check out:

Pre-draft Projected Starters for the 2023 Buffalo Bills