Buffalo Bills address need at cornerback by selecting Kentucky’s Maxwell Hairston 30th in NFL draft

By Canadian Press on April 24, 2025.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills addressed their biggest offseason need by selecting Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston with the 30th pick in the NFL draft on Thursday.

Listed at 5-foot-11 and 182 pounds, Hairston led the SEC as a sophomore in 2023 with five interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns. He had only one interception last year plus two forced fumbles in seven starts while missing five due to a shoulder injury.

Hairston joins a team with a hole at cornerback after returning starter Rasul Douglas was unsigned, and Buffalo elected to move on from Kaiir Elam by trading the third-year player to Dallas last month. Buffalo added veteran depth at the position with the free-agent additions of Tre’Davious White and Dane Jackson, who both rejoin the team after a one-year absence.

Hairston becomes the first defensive player the Bills have selected with their first pick in the draft since taking Elam at No. 23 in 2022.

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John Wawrow, The Associated Press