As the Buffalo Bills prepare for the 2025 NFL season, we’ll take a look at the most important contributors on their roster. They have a ton of cornerstone players who will be returning for another shot at bringing a Lombardi Trophy to Buffalo, and they’ll have help from some new additions as well.
Leading up to the season, we will be counting down the top 30 most important players on the roster. We’ll recap their 2024 season, look ahead to what they’ll offer in 2025, and tackle the most pressing questions surrounding them this coming year.
Next up on the countdown is Christian Benford.
Background
Position: Cornerback
Age at start of season: 24
Experience: Fourth year
2025 cap hit: $2,648,569
2024 recap
Christian Benford has entered into talks of the top-ten cornerbacks in the game. He’s seemingly gotten better each year since breaking onto the scene in 2022 as a sixth-round rookie out of Villanova. In 2024, he recorded the fifth-best PFF grade among NFL CBs (82.6). It was his second consecutive season recording two interceptions, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and 10 passes defensed. He finished tied for 22nd in the NFL in Defensive Player of the Year voting. This offseason, general manager Brandon Beane rewarded Benford’s consistent play with a four-year, $69 million extension, keeping him tied to Buffalo until the 2030 offseason.
2025 outlook
Benford will once again be relied upon by head coach Sean McDermott and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich to lock down his side of the field at cornerback. No matter the coverage called, the coaches are confident he’ll do his part on the defense, where he’s becoming a leader to the incoming young defensive backs. Missing Benford in the AFC title game hurt the Bills immensely, and a healthy Benford through the finish line this year would be huge for the Bills’ chances of reaching of the Super Bowl.
Biggest question: Who will be his running mate?
While Benford has CB1 locked down, CB2 is still a question for 2025. Fan favorite Tre’Davious White has claimed that role at the beginning of camp and has held it down, especially after the knee injury to first-round rookie corner Max Hairston. But, now White is banged up, with a leg injury of his own and Hairston should be returning in the near future. Who ends up being CB2 opposite of Benford will be a major storyline to watch develop.
30 Most Important Bills of 2025
Check back as we continue to countdown on our list of the 30 most important Bills ahead of the 2025 season.
No. 30 DT T.J. Sanders, No. 29 LB Dorian Williams, No. 28 DT Larry Ogunjobi, No. 27 Alec Anderson, No. 26 DE A.J. Epenesa, No. 25 DT DaQuan Jones, No. 24 TE Dawson Knox, No. 23 WR Elijah Moore, No. 22 WR Joshua Palmer, No. 21 S Cole Bishop, No. 20 K Tyler Bass, No. 19 WR Keon Coleman, No. 18 G David Edwards, No. 17 DE Joey Bosa, No. 16 G O’Cyrus Torrence, No. 15 CB Max Hairston, No. 14 TE Dalton Kincaid, No. 13 LB Matt Milano, No. 12 DT Ed Oliver, No. 11 S Taylor Tapp, No. 10 RB James Cook, No. 9 C Connor McGovern, No. 8 WR Khalil Shakir, No. 7 DE Greg Rousseau, No. 6 CB Taron Johnson, No. 5 LB Terrel Bernard, No. 4 OT Spencer Brown.
This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: 30 most important Buffalo Bills players of 2025: No. 3 Christian Benford