NFL draft preview: Bills don’t need a quarterback, but good year for teams that do

This is the first in a series previewing each position in the April 29-May 1 NFL draft. Today’s installment looks at quarterback.

If you’re an NFL team needing a quarterback, immediately or in the future (which could always be sooner than later), this should be a fruitful draft.

The Buffalo Bills can consider themselves fortunate not to be among those clubs.

But the ones in that category will be choosing prospects from a position that might very well be the strongest of any in this year’s college crop.

The foregone conclusion that the Jacksonville Jaguars will make Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence the top overall pick is only part of the equation. The rest is the likelihood that as many as four other quarterbacks could be chosen in the top 10.

The San Francisco 49ers are so convinced that this is as good an opportunity as any for an upgrade from Jimmy Garoppolo, they gave up first-round picks in 2022 and 2023 as part of a trade with the Miami Dolphins to move from 12th to third overall.

Overall position ranking: 8 out of 10.

Bills view: Few teams are as set at quarterback as the Bills.

Their starter, Josh Allen, had a transformative season in 2020. He led one of the most dynamic passing attacks in the NFL and finished second in league MVP voting to Aaron Rodgers.

At some point between now and the start of the season, the Bills are expected to sign Allen to a long-term contract extension that could make him the highest-paid player in the game.

One of the Bills’ more impressive free-agent moves was signing Mitchell Trubisky, whom the Chicago Bears made the No. 2 overall pick in 2017, to be Allen’s backup. Trubisky represents a major improvement over Matt Barkley. The Bills also still have Jake Fromm, a fifth-round pick from Georgia last year who was their emergency quarantine quarterback last season.

Bills need ranking: 1 out of 10.

The best: Trevor Lawrence, Clemson. You look at his size (6-foot-6 and 220 pounds), and you immediately think classic pocket passer. And you’d be correct. He's exceptional at dropping back and making every throw a quarterback must make to succeed in the NFL.

Yet, that only tells part of the story. Lawrence also is a tremendous athlete with the ability to make large gains as a runner. He has excellent field vision. He consistently makes good decisions with not only where to go with the ball, but also whether to pull the ball down and run.

Perhaps the most telling data on Lawrence’s NFL readiness is, according to the analytics website Pro Football Focus, his 118.4 passer rating when blitzed and 97.9 passer rating under pressure.

“There’s no negatives, there’s no knock on him,” draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr., said on ESPN. “To me … when you look at all-time in my 43 years of evaluating this stuff, I have John Elway had the highest grade ever for me, Andrew Luck was second, Peyton Manning was third and Trevor Lawrence will be fourth ahead of Jim Kelly, who is now fifth. So that’s the top five.”

Names to know: Besides Lawrence, other QBs expected to be drafted in the top 10 are Zach Wilson of BYU, Justin Fields from Ohio State, Trey Lance of North Dakota State and Mac Jones of Alabama.

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Wilson is a talented thrower and does a nice job against the blitz. Some questions linger about how he will perform against higher-level competition, because he didn’t see much.

Lance is the most intriguing prospect at the position. He arguably has the best arm of the bunch, but equally impressive is the combination of power and speed he possesses as a runner with his 6-4, 226-pound frame.

Irish winner: With 30 victories, Ian Book is the winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history. 

One-game wonder: With North Dakota State limited to only one game due to the pandemic, Lance had one chance in 2020 to show his skills. He completed 15 of 30 passes for 149 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception, and also ran 15 times for 143 yards and a pair of TDs.

Top 10

Player / School / Height / Weight

1. *Trevor Lawrence, Clemson,, 6-6 220

2. *Zach Wilson, BYU, 6-3, 210

3. *Justin Fields, Ohio State, 6-3, 228

4. *Trey Lance, North Dakota State, 6-4, 226

5. *Mac Jones, Alabama, 6-3, 214

6. Kyle Trask, Florida, 6-5, 240

7. Kellen Mond, Texas A&M, 6-2, 205

8. *Davis Mills, Stanford, 6-4, 225

9. Jamie Newman, Wake Forest, 6-2, 235

10. Ian Book, Notre Dame, 6-0, 210

* underclassman