We’re back with another installment of the newest 2026 NFL Draft series here at the blog — “Five at Five” — and today’s iteration will be no different than the last. Sorry to disappoint.
Five draft prospects at 5 p.m. ET right here on the BuffalFAMbase site.
Who will today’s plethora of players be?
Let’s crack open today’s five pack of prospects, shall we? I’m feeling a little thirsty for some fresh juice in Buffalo this season, particularly on defense.
Josiah Trotter, Linebacker, University of Missouri (6-foot-2, 237 pounds/Age: 20)
Although he’ll turn 21 in just under a week on April 15, Josiah Trotter — the son of former Philadelphia Eagles legend Jeremiah Trotter Sr. and brother of current Philadelphia linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. — is still one of the younger prospects coming out in this year’s draft class.
But, just because he’s young, doesn’t mean he isn’t one of the better prospects.
He is.
Despite deciding to forgo his remaining years of eligibility at the University of Missouri to enter this year’s league-wide lottery, the redshirt sophomore still left quite a lasting impact on the Tigers’ program in a short period of time, especially considering he started his career at West Virginia University in 2023.
In totality, the younger of the Trotter brothers actually only played two collegiate seasons after suffering a lower-leg injury that forced him to medically redshirt for the entirety of his first year on campus at West Virginia before he burst onto the scene in 2024.
In that redshirt freshman campaign, Trotter was an honorable mention for the All-Big 12 team while also earning First Team Freshman All-American honors on top of being selected as the Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Year after he started 11 of 12 games, recording a career-best 92 total tackles, four tackles for loss, two pass deflections, one interception, and a half sack.
The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, native went on to hit the transfer portal following that performance, and he ultimately took his talents to Mizzou.
Once in the SEC, Trotter showed no signs of being hindered by a step up in competition as he earned First-Team All-SEC honors in his one season with the team after tallying 84 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, two sacks, and one pass deflection.
It was a stellar performance from the tenacious defender, and one that convinced him to take his talents to the next level rather earlier.
But, you can’t really blame him. It was only two seasons, but he showed that he belonged amongst the elite of the elite in college football while bashing heads in the running lanes of the SEC, and he’ll undoubtedly be doing that on Sundays in the NFL just like his Dad did.
And it’s fitting that Trotter is a bit of a throwback as a linebacker — an ode to the old man — but there are concerns about his play in coverage despite his incredible toughness and downhill abilities in the run game.
He’ll likely have a long career in the league if he can find the right fit, and a defense like Jim Leonhard’s scheme in Buffalo just might be the place to do it.
Leonhard is a former NFL player himself, so he might have the ultimate respect for Trotter’s bloodlines.
For his career, the former Mountaineer and Tiger finished his two-year run in college with 176 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss, three pass deflections, two-and-a-half sacks, and one interception.
Trotter made a top-30 visit with the Bills earlier this spring, and one has to wonder if he’s the linebacker that the Bills have had their sights set on all offseason long after doing little to nothing to add to the position so far as we’re now about a month into the NFL’s new league year.
We’ll see in a few weeks, but his toughness would certainly be a welcomed presence in the middle of Buffalo’s defense next season.
Gracen Halton, Defensive Tackle, Oklahoma University (6-foot-3, 298 lbs/Age: 22)
Just as we have in the previous few editions of this BuffaloFAMbase segment, we are highlighting another defensive lineman yet again.
Starting to notice a theme?
Well, you should . . . if not, PAY ATTENTION.
Much like I mentioned with Trotter and the linebacking position in the words written above, the Buffalo Bills and Brandon Beane have also done next to nothing so far this spring to add any reinforcements to the middle of a defensive front that has lost veterans DaQuan Jones and Larry Ogunjobi to free agency.
I mean, technically both players are still on the market, but you get the idea.
So, with that said, it’s growing increasingly likely that the Bills will look to add at least another body to the room in the upcoming draft, and that one player could be Oklahoma University’s Gracen Halton, a 6-foot-3, 298-pound defensive lineman who had 84 total tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss, eight-and-a-half sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two pass deflections, and one defensive touchdown in 47 games played across four seasons with the Sooners.
It was a solid career for the San Diego, California, native, and one that he hopes gets him a chance to hear his name called rather early on in the night on Day 2 of the draft later this April.
He’s not particularly large, at least not compared to some of the other massive defensive lineman in this class, but Halton’s plenty disruptive.
In 2025 alone, he had career-highs in tackles (33) and tackles for loss (7), while also adding three-and-a-half sacks.
At the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana, Halton continued his dominance as he had a 40-yard dash time of 4.82 seconds, a 10-yard split of 1.7 seconds, a 36.5” vertical jump, a 9’-6” broad jump, and a 8.09-second time in the three-cone drill, which all showcased the explosiveness and agility that make him such a force along the defensive line.
Some think he’s a bit of a scheme-specific player, but might that scheme be in Buffalo?
It’ll be interesting to see if his visits with the team convinced Beane and Co. enough to take a chance on the quick-footed defensive tackle in the coming weeks.
We’ll find out, won’t we?
Anthony Hill Jr., Linebacker, University of Texas (6-foot-2, 238 lbs/Age: 21)
Anthony Hill Jr. is an intriguing young prospect out of the University of Texas who is seemingly generating a lot of late first-round buzz in recent weeks, especially after the 21-year-old dominated the combine this winter.
At the league-wide function, the former Longhorn ran a blazing time (relatively speaking, of course) of 4.51 seconds in the 40-yard dash, had a 10-yard split of 1.58 seconds, a vertical jump of 37”, a broad jump of 10’-5”, and — on top of all of that — he put up 21 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.
It was eye popping, and it only backed up what the tape seemed to say about the playmaking linebacker according to most scouts — he can seemingly do it all.
At 6-foot-2, 238 pounds, he packs a punch in the run game and is able to withstand the rigors of holding up against bigger offensive lineman down in and down out, but he can also stand and run with just about anybody when in coverage.
He has all the makings of a future 10-year linebacker in the league, but of course he just has to do it at the next level.
There’s questions about missed tackles at times, but he’s in command while on the field and he could potentially be an instant impact player as a rookie in the right system.
In Buffalo? Perhaps.
For his career, the standout linebacker earned Second-Team AP All-American and Second-Team All-SEC honors twice in his three seasons down in Austin, Texas, and he also was awarded Freshman All-American honors and named the Big 12 Co-Defensive Freshman of the Year in 2023.
In total, he collected 249 tackles, 31.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, eight forced fumbles, four pass deflections, three interceptions, and two fumble recoveries.
His best season came as a sophomore in 2024 when he had an SEC-leading 16.5 tackles for loss to go with his 113 total tackles, four forced fumbles, and one interception.
He displayed his playmaking prowess time and time again while donning the white and orange the past three years, and he’s now quietly hearing rumblings about becoming a first-round selection in just a few short weeks.
Could that first-round landing spot be at pick No. 26? It just might be. Crazier things have happened.
Stay tuned.
Skyler Bell, Wide Receiver, University of Connecticut (6-foot, 192 lbs/Age: 23)
FINALLY, an offensive option.
Sorry, folks. I promise we’ll get to more offensive prospects in the coming days leading up to the big night on April 23, but spoiler alert: the Bills are probably going to be selecting a lot of defenders in this year’s draft.
So, brace yourself.
I know fans have become accustomed to bracing themselves in a bad way over the last few years when it comes to the defense in the most crucial of moments in the postseason, but Bills Mafia members need to remember that defense can be fun, too.
Don’t be scared. Soft zone coverages can’t hurt you anymore . . . I hope, at least.
But, alas, it’s not your fault that you want to see touchdowns scored — who doesn’t?
And, the player listed above — UCONN wide receiver Skyler Bell — can do just that for quarterback Josh Allen and head coach Joe Brady for many years to come if the team . . . you know . . . decides to draft him.
If they do, it’d be a good decision.
The Bronx, New York, native has plenty of talent to provide to his future NFL team.
Standing at 6-foot and weighing 192 pounds, Bell has a solid build and the versatility to play both inside and outside on any given play.
That ability to be interchangeable will prove to be invaluable for the former Husky moving forward in his professional career, just as it did during his time at the University of Connecticut and the University of Wisconsin, which is where he started his collegiate career in 2021 before transferring back to the East Coast for his final two seasons in 2024.
Bell, a solid player during his time with the Badgers, really exploded once he found his new home in New England, which actually wasn’t much of a new home at all considering he attended high school at Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut.
But, I digress.
During his first three years, Bell managed to record just 69 receptions for 755 yards and six touchdowns across 26 games, but in his final two seasons with UCONN the former Taft standout felt right at home as he collected an impressive 151 receptions for 2,138 yards and 18 touchdowns.
He followed that dazzling display on the field by blowing up at the combine in February, posting an 11’-1” broad jump, a 41” vertical, a 1.53-second time in the 10-yard split, and a 40-yard dash time of 4.40 seconds.
Bell didn’t necessarily need to open more eyes, but he did anyway.
And, now he’s hoping to hear his name called as early as Day 2 in this year’s draft.
That might not align with where Buffalo is going to be making their picks on night one and night two, but should the receiver be available at one of the Bills’ picks in the third or fourth round — he just might be the best player left on the board, and at that point you have to pull the trigger if you’re doing this whole “GMing” thing right.
You can’t go wrong with good players, and Bell isn’t just good — he’s borderline great.
He has starting potential down the line, and he’d be an instant upgrade to Buffalo’s receiving room.
Don’t discount this as a possibility in a couple of weeks.
Jake Golday, Linebacker, University of Cincinnati (6-foot-4, 239 lbs/Age: 22)
For the final portion of this “Five at Five,” shocker . . . we have another defender, but it’s for good reason,
Jake Golday is one of the most intriguing prospects in this draft class coming out of the University of Cincinnati.
At 6-foot-4, 239 pounds, Golday has tremendous size and length for the position, and he was even used as an “overhang” defender of sorts in the slot at times during college, so there’s coverage upside with this player, as well.
At his impressive size, the Arlington, Tennessee, native exploded at the combine like a few others mentioned above, as he recorded a 40-time of 4.62 seconds, had a 1.6-second 10-yard split, a 39” vertical jump, a 10’-5” broad jump, a 20-yard shuttle time of 4.34 seconds, and a time of 7.02 seconds in the three-cone drill.
Simply put, there are things to work with in his toolbox.
And, NFL general managers are often infatuated with toolsy players even if their college production doesn’t match the athletic testing numbers.
Luckily for Golday, however, his film seems to stack up to what he displayed at the combine.
After starting out at the FCS level for his first three seasons at the University of Central Arkansas, where he started 22 games and registered 125 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, five-and-a-half sacks, and two forced fumbles, the former UCA Bear took his talents to the University of Cincinnati and only continued to ascend.
While in Ohio the past two years, the athletic defender earned Honorable Mention All-Big 12 honors in 2024 before becoming a First Team All-Conference performer in 2025 when he collected a team-high 105 total tackles, six tackles for loss, three-and-a-half sacks, three pass deflections, and one forced fumble.
It was a bit of a “rags-to-riches” story in terms of Golday making the leap from the FCS to the FBS, and now he’s hoping to make another jump up in competition to make his name known while playing on Sundays in the NFL.
He did have a 39” vertical, remember? So, that shouldn’t be a problem, right? (Wink, wink).
Keeping all that in mind, it’s not all sunshine and roses for the linebacker, he has his warts, so to speak. But, he’s an intriguing prospect, nonetheless.
Even if he were to never put it all together on Sundays, he’s certainly suited to be a quality special-teamer given his high-end athletic abilities.
So, given that added value, don’t be shocked if Jim Leonhard and special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers want Brandon Beane to put Golday in Buffalo blue and red next year.
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