During the 2025 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills went defense in the first round, taking Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston. The Bills weren’t the only team from New York to take a defensive player within the first 32 picks.
Even though the New York Giants play in New Jersey, they are still New York’s team. The Giants held the No. 3 overall pick, taking Penn State’s pass rusher Abdul Carter.
Carter should be a starter from Day 1 and can make a serious impact on the team. Even though the Giants have a handful of pass rushers, passing on Carter was never going to happen.
The New York Giants Could Trade A Pass Rusher
Last year, New York traded for Carolina Panthers star defensive end Brian Burns to pair with pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux. Burns is in the middle of a $141 million contract, so he isn’t going anywhere. However, Thibodeaux is still on his rookie contract and could be traded.
If Carter and Burns have locked down the two pass-rushing spots, that could leave Thibodeaux looking for a new home. There will be a handful of teams looking for a nice pass rusher, and the Bills are on that list.
Buffalo should be doing everything it can to acquire another defensive end before the season starts, and Kristopher Knox from Bleacher Report has a trade proposal to land Thibodeaux in Buffalo.
Bills Trade Pitch For Thibodeaux
Bills Get:Â Edge Kayvon Thibodeaux
Giants Get:Â 2026 2nd-round pick, DT DaQuan Jones
“Though the Buffalo Bills are clearly looking to capitalize on their Super Bowl window, I didn’t include them as a top suitor for Parsons either. Buffalo simply doesn’t have the financial flexibility needed to hand out a market-leading pass-rusher contract,” Knox wrote. “Buffalo is currently over the cap. If the Bills were interested in bolstering their pass rush ahead of Week 1, though, they could target New York Giants’ standout Kayvon Thibodeaux. The 2022 first-round pick has tallied 21 sacks in three seasons and is set to carry a cap hit of only $10 million in 2025. He may also be viewed as expendable after New York traded for Brian Burns in 2024 and drafted  Abdul Carter in April.”
“There haven’t been any firm trade rumors involving Thibodeaux. However, Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon examined hypothetical trade packages for Thibodeaux just before the draft. Buffalo didn’t make Gagnon’s list. Partnering Thibodeaux with Joey Bosa, Gregory Rousseau, and A.J. Epenesa would give the Bills a potent pass-rushing rotation, however. And Buffalo could look to offload pricey defensive tackle DaQuan Jones as part of the deal. Dumping the final year of Jones’ contract would save $7.8 million in cap space while making room for offseason additions Larry Ogunjobi, T.J. Sanders, and Deone Walkerâthough Ogunjobi faces a six-game suspension,” Knox added.
“Pairing Jones with Dexter Lawrence would give New York a terrific defensive line rotation and would make some sense schematically. Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was an outside linebackers coach for the Tennessee Titans during Jones’ last three years with the franchise.”
The Giants drafted Thibodeaux with the No. 5 pick in 2022. The 6-foot-5 pass rusher has appeared in 43 games, recording 21 sacks. In 2023, Thibodeaux had 11.5 sacks and looked like he could get there last season, but missed five games due to injury.
If the Giants do make Thibodeaux available, then the Bills should be calling New York in seconds, as he could be the missing piece to a Super Bowl win.
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