Christian Benford, the Buffalo Bills’ sixth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, has rapidly emerged as one of the league’s most underrated cornerbacks. Despite being selected 162 picks after first-rounder Kaiir Elam, Benford secured a starting role in his rookie season and has since solidified his position as a key component of Buffalo’s defense.
In the 2023 season, Benford started 14 games, recording 54 tackles, 10 pass deflections, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles. His performance earned him a top-10 Pro Football Focus (PFF) grade among qualified cornerbacks, highlighting his consistency and reliability in coverage.
Benford’s impact continued into the 2024 season, where he maintained elite coverage metrics. Through the first four weeks, he was one of only four starting cornerbacks not to allow a reception of 15 or more yards. Additionally, quarterbacks targeting him had a passer rating of just 14.6, the lowest among cornerbacks with at least 100 coverage snaps.
His performance has not gone unnoticed by analysts. Bleacher Report included Benford in its NFL “All-Underrated” team ahead of the 2024 season, and NFL Media’s Gennaro Filice identified him as the Bills’ most underappreciated player.
Despite these accolades, Benford was notably absent from the Pro Bowl roster, a snub that underscores his under-the-radar status. With a PFF coverage grade of 82.8 (second among cornerbacks) and allowing just 0.51 yards per coverage snap (third), his omission highlights the gap between performance and recognition.
As the Bills continue to rely on Benford’s steady presence in the secondary, his trajectory suggests that broader recognition is on the horizon. For now, he remains a cornerstone of Buffalo’s defense and a testament to the team’s ability to identify and develop talent beyond the early rounds of the draft.
