Bills G.M.: Trade up was never close to happening

[Billy Buffalo]

There might have been some phone calls, but Bills General Manager Brandon Beane said the suggestion that the Bills were close to trading up last night.

And they didn’t consider trading down, when Ed Oliver fell into their laps.

According to Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News, Beane said reports the Bills were close to trading up were overblown.

“Yeah, as we always do, there was a lot of exploring in front of us, some of it you’re also trying to figure out what people are going to do,” Beane said. “That report was played up much higher than it was. There was never any exchange of compensation or anything like that. That’s when, to me, you’re getting serious on a trade if you start talking parameters of what it’s going to take to move up and move back.”

There were reports the Jets spoke with the Bills and Raiders while on the clock with the third pick, but they sat tight and took defensive tackle Quinnen Williams.

Beane said there were chances to move down (and Pittsburgh trading up to 10th to get linebacker Devin Bush indicates that’s true), but the chance to add Oliver was too good to risk moving down.

“I realized really this week that nine was going to be a very valuable spot,” Beane said. “Denver could have potentially been in the market for a quarterback, I think right after we picked Pittsburgh traded up. There was a lot of action either way that you could’ve done, but we were set that if there was a guy there that we felt worthy of the pick, that we were going to take that and not chance losing him.”

Beane said there was some concern about Detroit trading the eighth pick to someone who might have wanted to take the Houston defensive tackle, but when the Lions held fast and drafted T.J. Hockensen, they were able to secure a guy who could be an immediate difference-maker for their line.