The "Kentucky-to-NFL" pipeline keeps churning out talent, and for the Buffalo Bills, drafting Wildcats seems to be the cheat code. It started with Ray Davis.
The Athletic, one of the most respected voices in sports media, just released its 2025 NFL All-Rookie Team, and two former Kentucky stars made the cut.
Remarkably, they are teammates in Buffalo.
The steal of the draft: Deone Walker
Walker was taken in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, a slide that experts picked because of a Junior season at Kentucky that was not as dominant as it should have been. Few knew he was playing with a broken back, though. Buffalo capitalized, and Walker immediately made the rest of the league look foolish.
At 6-foot-7 and 331 pounds, he was an anchor in the middle of the Bills' defense, ending the season with 16 starts in 17 games.
He wasn't just a space-eater, either. Walker finished with four passes defended, one sack, and a fumble recovery, proving to be a nimble giant for a team that had Super Bowl aspirations.
The first-rounder: Maxwell Hairston
The Bills also used their first-round pick (30th overall) to grab a Kentucky player, cornerback Maxwell Hairston.
While his season was limited by injuries, he saw snaps in 11 games with just three starts. Hairston was electric when he was on the field. The 5-foot-11 corner snagged two interceptions and recorded 18 tackles in his limited action. His speed is something that you just can't teach, running one of the fastest combine times in 40-yard dash history.
That is elite production per snap, and it was enough to earn him a spot alongside his college teammate on the prestigious list.
Seeing a first-round pick and a fourth-round steal both hit the ground running in the NFL is a great recruiting pitch for Will Stein, even if the players are from the Mark Stoops era.