The Buffalo Bills were solely focused on defense in the early rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft and they might have found a gem in their first-round pick.
Buffalo selected Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston with the 30th overall pick of the draft. The Bills highly suggested that the position of cornerback is needed as they look for another starter to take over for free agent Rasul Douglas.
With Hairston projected to be one of the starters on defense, that would already put him in the conversation for defensive rookie of the year. It's now a question of how he stacks up against the rest of the rookies in the class.
ESPN writer Ben Solak examined the top candidates for the year, offensive rookie of the year, and defensive rookie of the year. Hairston was ranked as Solak's fifth player in the defensive rookie of the year list. Here is how the top five looked:
- (1) Mykel Williams, Edge, San Francisco 49ers
- (2) Jalon Walker, Edge, Atlanta Falcons
- (3) Abdul Carter, Edge, New York Giants
- (4) Shemar Stewart, Edge, Cincinnati Bengals
- (5) Maxwell Hairston, CB, Buffalo Bills
Solak believes that Hairston will see plenty of action in his short explanation of him comparing to other defensive rookies.
"Hairston will see targets playing opposite Christian Benford, and he has the ball skills and explosive play ability to create not just interceptions but also touchdown returns."
Last season at Kentucky, Hairston missed five games due to a shoulder injury, but still managed to rack up19 tackles, four pass deflections, two forced fumbles, one sack, and one interception returned for a touchdown in seven games. He was previously a second-team All-SEC selection in 2023 after leading the conference in interceptions with five.
Hairston made waves at the NFL Combine, running the fastest 40-yard dash time with a 4.28-second run. He also ran a 1.5-second 10-yard split to be crowned the quickest player in the draft class.
Hairston's speed is known. Now, it's about how it translates on the field against the top wide receivers in the NFL.
