On the sixth day of Bills training camp on July 30, Buffalo rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston suffered an LCL sprain in his knee. Three months later, Hairston played a crucial role in knocking off the Kansas City Chiefs 28-21 on Sunday.

In Hairston’s debut against the Carolina Panthers last week, the 30th overall pick played 44.3% of the defensive snaps (27) and made one tackle. The corner faced 12 coverage snaps in Carolina and did not get targeted once. 

Editor’s Note: Hairston reads his keys, recognizes the swing pass, attacks downhill with a low pad level, and makes a nice tackle.

This past Sunday afternoon against Kansas City, the rookie received more time, playing 50% of the snaps (30), recording his first career interception in the late fourth quarter, while not allowing any receptions on 17 coverage snaps, according to SumerSports. Hairston and the Bills’ pass defense limited Patrick Mahomes to completing just 44.1% of his passes, which marks the lowest completion percentage of his career.

Hairston’s game speed faced a serious test against the Chiefs. Xavier Worthy holds the record for fastest 40-yard dash ever (4.21), Hollywood Brown ran a 4.27, and Tyquan Thornton posted a 4.28. Hairston ran a 4.28, thus theoretically making him a perfect matchup fit against one of the league’s fastest offenses.

Editor’s Note: Hairston has eyes on the quarterback, flips his hips at the right time, and stays step for step and in-phase with Worthy all the way down the field.

In the two weeks Hairston has played, opposing quarterbacks have gone 31/58 for 425 yards, no touchdowns, and two interceptions. For reference, Christian Benford and Tre’Davious White, when targeted this season, have allowed quarterbacks to go 37/59 for 348 yards and five touchdowns to no interceptions, according to Pro Football Reference.

Obviously, there’s more to that recent defensive pass game success than just Hairston; however, the rookie provides a rare set of athleticism and can eliminate a team’s deep threat just by his game speed alone. Opposing teams will have to have Hairston’s athleticism noted on film.

It has only been two weeks of play for the rookie out of Kentucky, but they’ve been promising two games. It will be interesting to see how and if Sean McDermott and his staff ramp up Hairston’s snaps. The rookie corner has shown brilliant flashes of potential, making it hard for him not to earn more playing time. With Hairston’s rare athletic ability, the rookie could provide new looks and schematic matchups for Buffalo going forward.