Since the Bills moved on from Stefon Diggs they’ve used the mentality that “everybody eats" — meaning there’s not just one receiver who gets the bulk of the targets.
That strategy worked for the most part last season — with the highest scoring offense in team history and an MVP year for Josh Allen.
But they are still missing a field-stretcher or potential classic No. 1 receiver type. There’s always room to add more talented weapons and Missouri’s Luther Burden III checks many of the boxes that could make him succeed in the NFL.
Burden was a five-star recruit coming out of high school, and he’s shown to be highly athletic with a knack for making big plays with the ball in his hands. He’s 6’0” and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.41 seconds at the NFL Scouting Combine.
“I’ve got a mentality as soon as I get the ball I’m trying to score,” Burden III said. “I’m trying to put my team in the best position to be successful.”
He had a monster season in 2023, with more than 1,200 receiving yards and nine TDs on 86 catches. His final season at Missouri wasn’t quite as eye-popping, with 61 grabs for just under 700 yards and six scores. There are questions about his consistency and the limited routes he was asked to run in college, while teams focused on taking him away.
“I feel I’m pretty much a game plan for every team I face,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy getting me the ball, but I knew that going into the game so I was already aware.”
Despite any concerns, it’s clear Burden III has the physical traits and past production that will make him coveted by some teams.
He said, “there’s a lot of doubters out here, so I want to prove everybody wrong.”