Buffalo Bills' 'mountain of a man' rookie set to wow for Super Bowl contender

Billy Heyen

Buffalo Bills' 'mountain of a man' rookie set to wow for Super Bowl contender image

The Buffalo Bills have a pretty well-established defensive line.

But there's at least one large rookie who would love to break through and earn his time there.

He happens to be a player, according to The Athletic, who was described by a scout as a "mountain of a man with endless possibilities in front alignment variations because of his athletic ability at that size."

That size: 6-foot-7 and 331 pounds.

The player: Deone Walker.

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The Bills took him in the fourth round of April's NFL Draft out of Kentucky. He's originally from Detroit, where he played for powerhouse Cass Tech.

Walker was most disruptive in the 2023 college season for the Wildcats, when he had 13 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks. That declined to 5 TFL and 1.5 sacks in 2024, which may have contributed to his fall to the fourth round despite great size and athleticism.

At the NFL Combine, Walker only took part in the vertical jump (25 inches) and broad jump (8-8).

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The Bills clearly bought in on his traits, though.

He's actually maybe an ideal fit for the Buffalo unit up front, because of the way he contrasts with Ed Oliver.

The talented veteran defensive tackle is undersized for his position. To get the most out of him, it can often help to have a much bigger guy alongside him to force offensive lines to make tough decisions.

Walker certainly has the size. If he can produce, too, it'd be key for Buffalo's chances this season and beyond.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle