ORCHARD PARK – The No. 1 reason why the Buffalo Bills drafted Max Hairston in the first round last April was the cornerback’s generational-type speed, and we all got to see it in real time last Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs.
At the NFL scouting combine, Hairston ran the fastest 40-yard dash time at 4.28 seconds, and when the Bills saw that, coupled with the solid play tape he compiled at the University of Kentucky, they knew he was their man.
In just his second game, Hairston delivered a huge play to help the Bills put away the Chiefs last week. With just over four minutes left and Patrick Mahomes on the field looking for a tying touchdown, Hairston found himself matched up with Xavier Worthy, meaning the two fastest players in the previous two scouting combines were head to head as they’d been on numerous snaps in the game.
“I knew coming into this game that they got straight up about four or five receivers that could just go,” Hairston said. “And then having Worthy who just set the (40-yard dash combine) record last year or whatever. Just knowing what to expect and just being confident because I ran a fast 40, too. I feel confident running with anybody.”
Mahomes was pressured on the third-and-10 play and was eventually drilled by Joey Bosa so he couldn’t get everything into his deep shot toward Worthy. At best, Mahomes was hoping for a great play from Worthy, or perhaps he could draw a pass interference penalty on Hairston. Neither happened as Hairston made the interception and it allowed the Bills to kill off all but the final 22 seconds of the game.
Max Hairston gaining trust of Buffalo Bills
“It’s been good to see Max get out there and have success,” general manager Brandon Beane said. “The smile on his face would make everybody excited to come to work. He’s just so genuine. What a tough deal he had. It’s going to get better, it’s not all going to be perfect. He’s facing some tough players, he’s going to have tough matchups this week (against Miami) and to come, so he’s still a rookie – a real rookie. He’s barely played a full game if you add up his total reps in two games.”
Buffalo’s secondary has lacked top-end speed throughout Beane and Sean McDermott’s tenure, and knowing who their primary combatants are in the AFC – particularly the Chiefs with all their speedy receivers – Hairston was the perfect fit.
It was a bummer that he wasn’t ready to start the season as he missed the first six games due to a training camp knee injury, but in just two games Hairston has looked exactly like the cornerback this team needed now, and into the future.
Hairston had an exact 50-50 split of snaps against the Chiefs with Tre’Davious White, 30 apiece, but it was telling that on that crucial possession, Hairston was on the field instead of the former All-Pro, White.
On his 18 coverage snaps, Mahomes targeted him four times. One was an incompletion to Rashee Rice, and the other three were attempts for Worthy. Worthy made an 18-yard reception, but Hairston had the interception and then the other play was straight man coverage, Worthy on a go route and Hairston in his hip pocket the entire way, a thing of beauty, preventing Worthy from making a play on the pass.
White was in coverage for 22 snaps and was targeted just once, a pass to Rice which he dropped, so it wasn’t like White was a liability.
“Yeah, we’ll evaluate that week to week,” defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said of the rotation. “Tre’s handled it really well, and then getting Max in, it just kind of helps him with all the time he did miss, kind of acclimate him into it. So, it’ll be a week-to-week thing, and that’s the way we’ll go about it.”
Max Hairston’s speed important against Miami’s receivers
However, there may not be a rotation Sunday against the Dolphins because it looks like Christian Benford will miss the game with a groin injury, so Hairston will be in line for his first NFL start, and he and White will play the vast majority of the game together.
Through the years the Bills have had excellent coverage players like White in his prime, and now Benford, but never someone who can match up with the fastest wideouts in the league, for instance, Miami’s Jaylen Waddle, which is partly why they have played so much zone defense. But Hairston’s speed will allow them to play more man-to-man defense, giving McDermott and Babich the opportunity to be more diverse than they’ve been.
“He’s off to a good start,” McDermott said of the rookie. “He would tell you that there are certain plays he wants back, of course. It’s just how can you continue on your routine even though there’s noise? And that’s one of the hardest things to do. There’s so much noise due to exposure and everything these days that you’ve got to be able to really navigate that and block out all that noise and get right back into your routine that got you the results that you had a week ago or two weeks ago, what have you. So you’ve got to stay very disciplined.”
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for more than four decades including 36 years as the full-time beat writer/columnist for the D&C. He has written numerous books about the history of the team, and he is also co-host of the BLEAV in Bills podcast/YouTube show. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rookie cornerback’s speed gives Buffalo Bills a new defensive edge
Reporting by Sal Maiorana, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
