Should the Buffalo Bills consider drafting Kayden McDonald in Round 1?

CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 11: Defensive Lineman Kayden McDonald #98 of the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrates after recovering a fumble in action during a game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Ohio State Buckeyes at Memorial Stadium on October 11, 2025 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Robin Alam/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images) | ISI Photos via Getty Images

Positional value is a very real portion of consideration in any NFL Draft. One of the more unique aspects of the 2026 NFL Draft class is that a fair amount of the blue-chip prospects are at traditionally less-valuable positions or roles. The class has an off-ball linebacker, running back, and safety who could all go top-10 in this relatively weak class at the top.

The defensive tackle position is one of the more valuable spots to target in any given draft. This is a unique class that, quite possibly, could have zero of them taken in Round 1. The favorite to be selected is a nose guard projection in the NFL with very little to offer in terms of pass-rushing ability. Needless to say, it’s a rough class of defensive tackles at the top this year.

Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald is that nose tackle projected to go in the area where the Bills are set to select at No. 26 overall. The junior came around as a more consistent starter in 2025 for a loaded Buckeyes defense that will feature multiple picks in the top half of the first round.

How Kayden McDonald wins

The name of the game for McDonald is twitchy explosion out of his stance, with equally explosive hand pop to create knock-back disruption — displaying a lot of the traits you want in a nose tackle. He has an ideal squatty body for the position, standing 6’2” and weighing 325 pounds. McDonald is a load to deal with coupling that first-step explosion maneuvering his gap with a hot running motor.

His ability to simply shoot a gap upfield is more impressive than you’d think of with a traditional nose. All of the tools are there for a very good run defender from day one in the NFL. He had an unbelievable 65 total tackles from the defensive tackle spot in 2025.

Where Kayden McDonald could fail

The baseline appears to be a good one on the surface as a run defender. But there are still questions to McDonald’s prospects as a first-round pick. The big, glaring weakness is due to his lack of pass-rush productivity and overall effectiveness in that department.

He’s not going to threaten outside shoulders, and there are some questions on if there’s really any upside to tap into as his lateral ability limits him. He’s also just raw as a rusher in general outside of the general limitations which make him a virtual zero outside of effort/secondary plays to get to the quarterback.

What to make of Kayden McDonald’s draft position

Whether you feel McDonald is a first-round caliber player truly boils down to value. The value of the role may not matter as much to a team that needs this kind of player plotted into the middle of their defensive line.

McDonald is a player teams select and likely sleep well that night because they can trust they’re getting a trustworthy player for his role. The worry is the ceiling and role consists of a player who is very likely to never have the ability to consistently affect the passer — the most important aspect for the value of selecting defensive linemen in the first round of the NFL Draft.