Buffalo Bills 2026 Draft Pick Claimed Off Waivers By Browns

Cut down day is a very important day in the NFL. It's the day that teams have to narrow their own roster down to just 53 players and hope that the players they cut can somehow make it through waivers to their own practice squad. For the most part, the Bills didn't lose too many players. However, one of their 2026 draft picks got snatched by another team.

Toriano Pride Jr. was claimed off waivers by the Cleveland Browns

The Bills chose Toriano Pride Jr. this year in the NFL Draft out of Missouri (he also played for Clemson). He was the first of three seventh-round picks for the Bills. Pride was in a battle with an undrafted free agent named Kani Walker who turned out to be a fan-favorite throughout camp and preseason.

Both were cut yesterday at cutdown day. However, Pride was picked up by the Cleveland Browns. Walker made it through waivers and will likely be added to the Bills' practice squad before the end of the day.

Todd Monken says it was the joint practice that opened their eyes to Pride

At a press conference after claiming him, Browns' head coach Todd Monken admitted it was the joint practice with the Bills that showed them what Pride could do. He said they liked how he covered and how he competed, and that was enough for them to want him on their team.

How do waivers work in the NFL?

Teams are able to claim players who were cut by their original teams until 1 pm Eastern time today (8/31) through a process called the waiver wire. Teams get to choose in the original order that they had in the draft that year. For example, the Raiders had the first pick in the draft, so they had the first right to claim a player through waivers after they're cut. If no team claims them after being cut, the players can then be added to a practice squad.

This is mostly good news for the Bills

The fact that only one player was snatched from the Bills after cuts is a good thing, and some would say a bad thing. It's good because the players that the Bills liked enough to draft or sign in the offseason can still be added to their practice squad and made available to play if they need them. In my opinion, I'd hate to see the Bills lose players like Frank Gore Jr. or Ian Walker to a team that really needs a running back.

Some people would say that it's a bad thing that no one else wanted those players either. But you have to remember that every team only gets so many players that they can keep. They have their own practice squad filled out with "their guys" so they just might not like them more than the guys that they've seen in practice.

The Bills will fill out the rest of their practice squad today and get to practice. They will have to prepare to head to Houston for their first regular-season game of the year soon enough.