Bills GM played game of chess to land Dalton Kincaid

Brandon Beane. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Bills GM played ultimate game of chess to land TE Dalton Kincaid

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 5/2/23

The Buffalo Bills needed another pass catcher for quarterback Josh Allen, but the run on wide receivers from picks No. 20 through 24 left them with few options.

But as it got closer to the Bills’ selection at pick No. 27, general manager Brandon Beane knew he couldn’t sit around and wait for tight Dalton Kincaid — the top-ranked pass catcher left on the board — to fall in his lap. Instead, he got aggressive.

"That's when we started making calls to the teams in front of us," Beane said Monday on SiriusXM NFL Radio. "For us, it was worth giving up that pick to ensure we got him."

Beane traded the No. 27 pick plus an additional fourth-rounder to the Jacksonville Jaguars for pick No. 25, leapfrogging the Dallas Cowboys at No. 26 to land the 6-foot-4 Utah tight end.

Beane stated he had “a good feeling” the Cowboys would have taken Kincaid had he not beaten them to the punch.

All the Draft Day drama...

Here's an exclusive look at how we landed our guy @_DaltonKincaid.@Ticketmaster | #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/40BM20dKCd
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) April 30, 2023

“I would have been disappointed getting that close to him because I didn’t think he’d get past the Chargers,” Beane said on draft night. “I thought that’s who was going to take him.”

Kincaid had a breakout season at Utah in 2022, catching 70 passes for 890 yards and eight touchdowns while being named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press and a first-team All-Pac-12 selection. It was the second straight year Kincaid had eight touchdown receptions.

The Bills will pair the 23-year-old Kincaid with 26-year-old tight end Dawson Knox, who had 48 receptions, 517 yards and six touchdowns last season while making his first Pro Bowl.

More must-reads: