Already a two-time Super Bowl-winning coach and team builder for the San Francisco 49ers, Bill Walsh entered the 1986 NFL draft with eight selections. The team had all-time greats in quarterback Joe Montana and receiver Jerry Rice, but they had multiple needs to help the franchise rebound after consecutive early-round playoff exits in the brutally difficult NFC.
The urgency was high.
So Walsh, naturally, went low.
Walsh and general manager John McVay turned those eight picks into 13 selections, plus first- and second-rounders in 1987 through six trades with six different teams.
From Nos. 39-162, the 49ers drafted eight players who would start in their Super Bowl win two years later over Cincinnati and combine for 18 championship rings.
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Yes, eight starters. From one draft. Yes, 18 rings. From one draft.
“I’m not saying we had a great draft, but I think we addressed our needs intelligently,” Walsh told reporters after a draft that can be argued as one of the most efficient in the last 40 years.
It was intelligent … and great.
How does this pertain to the Buffalo Bills as they prepare to report to Pittsford on Tuesday for training camp, still on their quest for the organization’s first Super Bowl title? Still working toward the first appearance for the regime of general manager Brandon Beane and coach Sean McDermott?
The correlation is easy, actually.
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Drafting remains the best way to go in today’s NFL, and hitting multiple home runs in the same year can set up a team for years of success.
Four years after they drafted quarterback Josh Allen, the Bills started (arguably) the second segment of the Beane/McDermott Era by adding running back James Cook, linebacker Terrel Bernard, wide receiver Khalil Shakir and cornerback Christian Benford in 2022.
Bernard, Shakir and Benford signed contract extensions this offseason. Cook wants an extension, and if he and the team can forge an agreement, the ’22 quartet will remain intact.
The 49ers had 1986, and the Bills could have 2022.
As the salaries of the Bills’ most important players rise via second and third contracts, so does the importance on finding cost-controlled, inexpensive labor. Players, who after a year of seasoning, can become starters. Players, who at the very least, can be valuable role options in case of injury. And players, ultimately, who can earn second contracts, removing the need to use a draft pick (or picks) to replace them.
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A projection by The Buffalo News of the Bills’ starting lineup for their Week 1 game against the Baltimore Ravens includes 17 of their draft picks – an organization-wide nod to their ability to identify, develop and, in the case of 11 players, sign to at least two contracts. An examination of the AFC’s elite teams showed 18 former draft picks starting in Baltimore and Kansas City, 16 with the Los Angeles Chargers, 14 in Cincinnati and 13 apiece for Denver and the New York Jets.
Beane’s first Bills draft pick was Allen in 2018, and each draft from 2019-25 will have at least one starter.
“You’re always wanting to (achieve) the perfect formula – draft, develop and sign those guys,” Beane said last month. “(Drafting players), you get them right when they come into the league, and you know where they’re coming from and you’re growing them into your culture, your system, your habits – everything we look for in a Buffalo Bill.”
How elite teams were built
The 1986 draft – all 12 rounds and 333 picks of it – was held starting at 8 a.m. on a Tuesday, April 29. (My, how things have changed, right?)
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Walsh told reporters there weren’t “25 superstars” on the board, and that the talent leveled off after the first 10-12 picks. Plan A, according to a 1990 Sports Illustrated story, was attempting to move up from No. 18 for Auburn running back Bo Jackson or Purdue quarterback Jim Everett. That effort was fruitless after Tampa Bay took Jackson first and Houston took Everett third. Walsh and general manager John McVay (grandfather of current Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay) plotted their master plan.
The 49ers identified defensive line, another running back to join Roger Craig, a complimentary receiver to Rice and a future offensive tackle.
As the Walsh/McVay tandem continued trading down, owner Eddie DeBartolo – connected via speakerphone from his home in Ohio – famously said, according to the Sports Illustrated story: “Hey, when are you going to pick somebody? Give me a name! My phone bills are going to be bigger than our signing bonuses!”
It worked out, Eddie.
The 49ers traded down from 18th because Dallas wanted to select UCLA receiver Mike Sherrard, and from No. 20 to No. 29 because Bills general manager Bill Polian wanted to draft Vanderbilt offensive lineman Will Wolford.
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“We didn’t feel (Wolford) would have been there when we had the pick in the second round,” Bills coach Hank Bullough said in The Buffalo News.
The 49ers’ first pick wasn’t until No. 39 (defensive end Larry Edwards), followed by fullback Tom Rathman (56), cornerback Tim McKyer (64), receiver John Taylor (76), defensive end Charles Haley (96), left tackle Steve Wallace (101), defensive end Kevin Fagan (102) and cornerback Don Griffin (162).
The eight players combined to play 829 games (642 starts) over 62 seasons for San Francisco. The second era of 49ers football was underway: They went on to win Super Bowls in 1988, 1989 and 1994. In the win over Cincinnati, 20 of the 49ers’ 22 starters were their draft picks.
That number is an outlier.
From 1970-76, following the NFL-AFL merger, the draft was 17 rounds. It was reduced to 12 rounds in 1977, eight rounds in 1993 and seven rounds, the current format, in 1994. Fewer kicks at the can meant fewer potential picks-turned-starters.
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Unrestricted free agency was introduced in 1993 and the salary cap in 1994. Pre-free agency and pre-cap, teams who drafted well could stockpile their talent. The 1991 Bills, who lost to Washington in the Super Bowl, had 16 drafted players start in the Super Bowl (including five from the 1987 draft) and in the first year of unrestricted free agency, the 1993 Dallas Cowboys had 14 draft picks start in their win over the Bills (including four from the 1991 draft).
The trend started to turn in the late 1990s.
The 1998 Denver Broncos had only eight draft picks start in their repeat Super Bowl win. Three – safety Steve Atwater, tight end Shannon Sharpe and running back Terrell Davis – made the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (Quarterback John Elway was acquired via trade.)
The 2001 New England Patriots had 11 draft picks, 10 free agents and one player acquired via waivers start in their Super Bowl win over the St. Louis Rams. The Patriots didn’t have a draft that produced more than two starters for that game.
Over the last dozen years, the data is a mixed bag. The 2013 Seattle Seahawks had 13 drafted starters in their Super Bowl win over Denver, including five from the 2011 draft and four from the 2012 draft. The 2019 Kansas City Chiefs had just nine draft picks start their win over San Francisco.
Last year, the Philadelphia Eagles had 13 draft picks start their win over the Chiefs, and 11 were first- or second-rounders.
Looking back at 2022
The 2022 draft, though, could be the catalyst for the Bills completing their scale to the NFL apex – and they missed on their first-round pick, cornerback Kaiir Elam. They drafted Cook at No. 63, Bernard No. 89, Shakir No. 148 and Benford No. 185.
A look inside how the Bills arrived at the picks …
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Round 2 of 2022 draft: The Buffalo Bills selected running back James Cook, who leads all players from that class in rushing yards. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
• Cook: Current assistant general manager Terrance Gray attended Cook’s pro day at Georgia, followed by a private workout conducted by Gray and running backs coach Kelly Skipper and Cook’s top-30 visit to Orchard Park.
“More of a quieter personality, so coming across a prospect like Cook, if you just spent 15 minutes with him, you may come away from it saying, ‘I’m not sure what I feel,’ ” Gray said. “But the more work we did, the more comfortable we felt about him. (Devin Singletary) was on our roster, and having Cook here with (Singletary), we felt it was a really good fit for us.”
Despite serving as Singletary’s backup in 2022 with just 89 carries, Cook leads the 2022 drafted running backs in yards (2,638) and is third in touchdowns (20) and tied for fifth in carries (533). His 16 rushing touchdowns last year tied for the league lead.
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Round 3 of 2022 NFL draft: The Buffalo Bills selected linebacker Terrel Bernard, who was a starter by Year 2 and a defensive captain by Year 3. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
• Bernard: The Bills drafted Tremaine Edmunds in 2018, and he was entering the final year of his contract in 2022. Bernard represented the contingency plan. He earned a “Bills Blue” label by the team, which represents a player who checks the on- and off-field characteristics they covet.
“He was our type of player,” Gray said. “At the time, we viewed him as a ‘Pipeline Guy,’ – we had Tremaine and (Matt) Milano starting – who could fill in and obviously, the story wrote itself when he replaced Tremaine (who signed with Chicago). Really smart. Our type of DNA. Our type of guy.”
Looking back at his notes from that draft weekend, assistant general manager Brian Gaine said: “As the third round was unfolding, it became clear he would be a target, but we had to run a gamut of teams hoping he would still be there. About 8-10 picks out, we had to sweat it out. At 3-4 picks away, we were trying to strategize about the other teams who may need a linebacker and if we would have to trade up for him. Luckily, he was (there).”
The Bills’ lone defensive captain last year, Bernard signed a four-year, $42 million contract in March and has 269 tackles.
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Round 5 of 2022 NFL Draft: The Buffalo Bills selected receiver Khalil Shakir, who led the team with 76 catches last year. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
• Shakir: The Bills had Diggs, Gabe Davis and Isaiah McKenzie under contract, but they traded up 20 spots to draft Shakir.
“He was a ‘Bills Blue’ player all the way – a guy who, the more time we spent with him, we knew he would be a great pro and a culture and Buffalo fit for us,” Gaine said. “We didn’t have a fourth-round (pick), and we never thought he would be available in the fifth round. We were sweating it out in the fourth and the top of the fifth, and we traded up.”
Shakir’s first 22 regular season/playoff games: 19 catches for 292 yards and two touchdowns.
Shakir’s last 31 regular season/playoff games: 139 catches for 1,641 yards and seven touchdowns.
Shakir signed a four-year, $53 million extension in March.
“If you’re moving up (in the draft), there is usually conviction on a player, and he was a guy we had scout conviction on, and we knew we were getting a good football player,” Gray said.
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Round 6 of 2022 NFL Draft: The Buffalo Bills selected cornerback Christian Benford, who has been a regular starter the last two years. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
• Benford: The Bills' previous hit on FCS players in 2018 (fourth-round Weber State cornerback Taron Johnson) and 2021 (third-round Northern Iowa right tackle Spencer Brown) and Benford is on the same track after playing for Villanova.
The Bills monitored Benford during the 2021 college season, and Gaine and Gray credited scout Pete Harris for his evaluation.
“Even when one of our area scouts comes to you with a name, you listen, but it’s a corner from Villanova and you’re like, ‘OK, we’ll get to him,’ ” Gray said. “But when we did get to him, we really liked what we saw. A turnover machine.”
The Bills were impressed by Benford’s week of practices at the Hula Bowl.
“Between the production, body type, instincts, physical tools – as a scheme fit, we were aware he was really, really good,” Gaine said. “We had our eyes on him, but had to wait for a long stretch after we traded up in the fifth for Shakir. He was still there at the top of the sixth, to our surprise.”
Benford has started 38 of his 43 regular-season/playoff games with five interceptions and 155 tackles and signed four-year, $69 million extension.
If the Bills, who are favored in all 17 games this year, can reach the Super Bowl this year, the Core Four from the 2022 draft will serve as linchpins. Just the way teams envision it.
“It’s great when you can continue to (build through the draft),” Beane said. “The other part of this is where we are from a financial standpoint and paying the guys we’ve had and having a franchise quarterback (Allen), you need to have as many draft picks playing some kind of role. They don’t necessarily have to start, but on this roster, you want as many as those guys as you can if you’re going to compete year in and year out.”
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