SPEED. SMARTS. SHUTDOWN POTENTIAL: Meet the Bills' Secret Weapon in the Secondary

   

His offerings go well beyond the elite 4.28 speed that he displayed at the NFL Combine.

In fact, there are multiple reasons why the Buffalo Bills viewed Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston as worthy of a first-round draft pick.

Not only does Hairston play what was a position of need for the Bills this offseason, he has a rare ability that makes him a potential perfect fit for a Sean McDermott-orchestrated defense. Buffalo has a tendency to employ a zone coverage scheme the majority of the time, and the first-round rookie showed a mastery of the scheme on film.

Feb 27, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kentucky defensive back Max Hairston (DB10) during the 2025 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium.

"Ultimately, you drafted a corner that can play in both zone and man, and I think, is relatively advanced in zone coverage concepts for college corners, who are not usually that good at it," said NFL Films senior producer Greg Cosell.

The 5-foot-11 Hairston, who claims to have bumped his weight up into the 190-pound range since previously weighing in a 183, shows a high football IQ on tape.

"I thought he understood the mandates of zone coverage, pattern recognition, had a good feel for spatial awareness. In every zone, there's conflict areas, there's stress areas, and coaches talk about that all the time, that they're trying to minimize those conflict and stress areas," said Cosell. "I thought he had a really good feel for that in zone coverage, and we know how important that is in Sean McDermott's defense because they do play a lot of zone concepts."

Jan 28, 2025; Mobile, AL, USA; American team defensive back Maxwell Hairston of Kentucky (11) approaches the line during Senior Bowl practice for the American team at Hancock Whitney Stadium. / Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

As the No. 30 overall selection, Hairston will seemingly have the chance to win Buffalo's starting cornerback job opposite Christian Benford.

“A guy like Max, you don't know that he's going to fall that far. We had him in for a 30 visit, been around him a few times, great young man," said Bills' general manager Brandon Beane. "He'll add, obviously, speed to our DB room, and we think he'll pair well with what we already have."

Kentucky Wildcats defensive back Maxwell Hairston (31) celebrates his tackle against Akron in Saturday's game at Kroger Field in Lexington. Hairston had seven tackles in the game. Sept. 16, 2023 / Matt Stone/Louisville Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Hoàng Plus -
The Latest

SPEED. SMARTS. SHUTDOWN POTENTIAL: Meet the Bills' Secret Weapon in the Secondary

Sport -7 giờ

His offerings go well beyond the elite 4.28 speed that he displayed at the NFL Combine. In fact, there are multiple reasons why the Buffalo Bills viewed Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston as worthy of a first-round draft pick. Not only does Hairston play what was ...

Margaret Josephs Defends Melissa Gorga, Says She’s “Very Disappointed” in Kathy Wakile Over Lunch Drama

Uncategory -7 giờ

In the ever-turbulent world of The Real Housewives of New Jersey, loyalty counts for everything — and Margaret Josephs is showing exactly where hers lies. After Kathy Wakile publicly questioned Melissa Gorga’s timeline and intentions around a long-overdue family reconciliation, Josephs isn’t staying quiet — and she’s making ...

The Bold and the Beautiful Spoilers: Steffy Catches Luna’s Visit with Finn – Comes Home to Chaos?

Uncategory -7 giờ

The Bold and the Beautiful (B&B) spoilers hint that Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) may catch Luna Nozawa’s (Lisa Yamada) cliff house visit with John “Finn” Finnegan (Tanner Novlan). Will Steffy come home to chaos and kick Luna out? During the week of ...

Britain’s Got Talent embroiled in yet another FIX row as fans are left furious over semi-final result

Uncategory -7 giờ

Two more finalists for the show have now been confirmed BRITAIN'S Got Talent has confirmed the identity of the show's next two finalists after the second live semi-final show. The ITV talent show saw a handful of talent appear on the programme hoping to impress ...

BBC Strictly Come Dancing star reveals she was 'left in tears' after suffering 'full breakdown'

Uncategory -7 giờ

The TV recentely launched a new group to help those struggling with anxiety A Strictly Come Dancing star has revealed that she was ‘left in tears’ after suffering a ‘full breakdown’ during a recent venture.   Irish TV presenter Angela Scanlon was the ...