Bills Acquire Safety Amani Hooker From Titans for a 2027 Second-Round Pick

The Buffalo Bills acquired safety Amani Hooker from the Tennessee Titans on Tuesday, hours before the NFL trade deadline. Buffalo sent Tennessee a second-round pick in the 2027 draft and received Hooker and a fifth-round pick in 2027 in return. Tom Pelissero of The Ringer reported the deal first on X, and NBC Sports, USA Today, Sports Illustrated and The Tennessean all reported the same terms.

Hooker, 28, is tied for the NFL lead with five interceptions this season. Three of them came in one game, against Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow on November 1, when he picked Burrow off three times in Tennessee's 43-36 overtime loss. He was the first NFL player with three interceptions in a game since Jordan Whitehead in 2023. Hooker has 52 tackles and six passes defensed in seven games this season, according to the Democrat and Chronicle.

Why Buffalo paid a second-round pick

Safety was Buffalo's clearest need at the deadline, and general manager Brandon Beane paid for the league's hottest ballhawk to fill it. The Bills are 7-1 and stand alone atop the AFC after a 23-6 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night. Their pass defense has been closer to league average than championship level, and Hooker can play deep safety, move down toward the line and cover the slot. His contract runs through the 2028 season, with no guaranteed money remaining, so Buffalo gets a starter in his prime and keeps an exit if the fit fails. USA Today's trade grades gave Buffalo a B minus and Tennessee an A, calling the price steep but the need real.

Tennessee keeps collecting picks

Hooker had played his entire eight-year career in Tennessee. The Titans drafted him in the fourth round in 2019 out of Iowa, where he was the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year in 2018. He became a full-time starter in 2021 and has 17 interceptions in 103 career games, with 74 starts. He signed a three-year, 40.5 million dollar extension in September 2025.

General manager Mike Borgonzi and coach Robert Saleh had both said in recent days that Hooker was not on the market. The Tennessean reported the offer changed that: a second-round pick was significant compensation for a rebuilding team. Tennessee had already traded defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons to Chicago on October 29 in a deal highlighted by two first-round picks, and the club now adds another premium selection for 2027.

The trade deadline was 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, November 10. Hooker's first game for Buffalo could come as early as Week 11, in a secondary that needed exactly what he has done all season: take the ball away.