In a league where the receivers seem to be getting taller and taller the Bills saw a need to match that nabbing Texas cornerback Aaron Williams with their second-round pick at 34th overall.
"Everything goes in cycles in football and it's gotten now where you've got big receivers and you need big corners and they're hard to find," said Bills GM Buddy Nix. "This guy is talented. He's really a good athlete. He's got some versatility. He can play corner obviously. He can play in the slot in nickel. We think he can also play safety."
Williams (6'0 1/4", 205), who was a two-year starter at Texas, appeared in 37 games and led the Longhorns in pass breakups with 13 in 2010. But Williams was less than satisfied with his 2010 campaign as he expected to build on the three interceptions he had his sophomore season.
"I just didn't catch the ball. I didn't finish any plays," he said. "Either a receiver knocked it down or I just didn't catch it. That was just my responsibility. And that's the one thing I'm going to work on this year in Buffalo. I'm going to go in there with a goal of finishing plays, getting more efficient and having more turnovers."
Perhaps the most attractive quality of Williams for the Bills is his willingness to hit and wrap up.
"He's a strong guy, physical," said Nix. "He's six-feet and a quarter and 205 pounds and he vertical jumped 38 inches. He's very explosive and he's a physical guy. He'll keep them on the line of scrimmage."
Williams, who had six forced fumbles in his career, also had the hit that ended Sam Bradford's college career at Oklahoma with a sack on the 2010 number one pick in the 2009 season.
"It was just a blitz. He play-faked it, his back was behind me and I had a clean shot," said Williams. "I just don't want to be a corner out there just trying to cover. I want to be an overall great player, not just a player good at one aspect of the game. I want to be an overall player."
Having played in the Big 12 conference facing big receivers like Dez Bryant and Oklahoma State's Justin Blackmon, the 2010 Biletnikoff award winner, Williams feels it's prepared him well for the big wideouts he'll see in the NFL. And that's important with wideouts like Brandon Marshall in the AFC East.
"I feel real comfortable with big guys," he said. "I've played big guys in my conference, but it's the NFL and every receiver is going to be good. You just have to work your technique, play hard and everything will fall into place."
After playing mostly outside on the boundary in 2009, Williams saw most of his work in the slot in 2010. Nix sees that versatility as an asset. The Bills GM said Williams will begin his career at cornerback with the Bills with safety a possible option down the line.
And that suits Williams just fine as corner is where he feels most comfortable.
"I'm a pretty big size for a corner and I can run pretty well for my size, real physical," said Williams. "But again, I'm going to do the best I can at whatever position they put me at."
