Buffalo Rumblings · Apr 9, 2023
Drafting for need vs. best player available: an experiment outlining the effects on roster talent level and competitiveness
“We took the best player available.”
It’s a phrase uttered numerous times every year by the Buffalo Bills and every other team in the league during press conferences conducted after the NFL Draft has concluded. Teams annually can’t believe how fortunate they were to have their preferred player still on the board at their selection. Every year, everything works out magically for all 32 teams that selected exactly their targeted player and nobody else. They’ll tell you that they took the best player available.
It’s also complete hogwash.
