ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) – Drew Bledsoe has a new receiver to throw to and an understudy to groom.

The Buffalo Bills significantly bolstered their struggling offense by drafting Wisconsin receiver Lee Evans, then swinging a trade to select Tulane quarterback J.P. Losman in the first round of the NFL draft Saturday.

Evans, who led the Big Ten in receiving last season, was selected 13th overall. The Bills then traded three draft picks, including their first-round selection next year, with Dallas to pick Losman 22nd overall.

As part of the deal, Buffalo also gave up its second- (43rd overall) and fifth-round (144th) selections in this year’s draft.

The moves were an attempt to improve an offense that finished 30th in the NFL last season and was blamed for Buffalo’s disappointing 6-10 finish.

In the third round, Buffalo selected Ohio State defensive tackle Tim Anderson with the 74th pick. A three-year starter, Anderson finished with 45 tackles, 31/2 sacks and two forced fumbles last season.

Offense highlighted the day for Buffalo, this draft marking only the sixth time the Bills have had two first-round picks.

The Bills believe Evans has the speed and catching ability to complement starter Eric Moulds, and fill the void left after the team traded Peerless Price to Atlanta before last season.

Losman fills a future need. The Bills were seeking a young quarterback to develop and eventually replace Bledsoe, who is coming off the worst season of his 11-year career.

. Bledsoe finished with 2,860 yards passing with 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 16 starts.

Another concern is Bledsoe’s potential salary-cap figure. Bledsoe is due a hefty bonus in November, when the team has to decide whether to extend his contract for another three years or allow him to become a free agent at the end of the season.

Donahoe said he’s trying to renegotiate the contract, but maintained that Bledsoe remains the team’s starter.

“This doesn’t send any signal. Drew’s our quarterback,” Donahoe said. “But Drew’s like all of us. He’s not going to play forever. And at some point we’ve got to start grooming a young guy.”

Rookie coach Mike Mularkey said Bledsoe was already made aware of the team’s plans to draft a quarterback.

Losman is a strong-armed and mobile player who, last year, became only the third quarterback in school history to throw for 3,000 yards. He finished with 3,077 yards passing with 33 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

A two-year starter, Losman finished with 6,754 yards passing, a 57.7 completion percentage with 60 touchdowns and only 27 interceptions.

Losman was criticized by some as being overconfident – he made clear that he considered himself the best quarterback prospect in the draft.

Donahoe didn’t consider that a negative.

“I like the fact that people don’t like his personality,” Donahoe said. “Because he’s a competitor and he’s going to try to stick it in your face and he’s going to try to stick it in everybody’s face. And that’s what we like about him.”

Losman was flattered that the Bills thought so highly of him.

“It’s not any added pressure that I put on myself. But, definitely the organization is showing me how much confidence they have in me,” Losman said. “It’s my duty to step up to the plate and perform to the best of my abilities.”

Losman becomes only the second quarterback the Bills have taken in the first round – joining Jim Kelly, the No. 14 pick in 1983 draft. He’s the first quarterback Buffalo has drafted since selecting Todd Collins in the second round in 1995.

By trading their two picks this year to land Losman, the Bills have four picks left, including a third-rounder (74th) in the two-day draft.

Evans is expected to have a more immediate impact.

“We certainly think he can come in and contribute and help us get our offense back on track,” Donahoe said. “We felt he was a complete receiver. There’s a lot of guys that are fast that struggle catching the ball. But Lee is a fast guy who can catch.”

Evans set a career school record at Wisconsin with 175 catches for 3,468 yards and 26 touchdowns, while averaging 19.92 yards a reception – second only to Tony Simmons.

The native of suburban Cleveland spent five years with the Badgers, missing the 2002 season with a knee injury. He showed no signs of the injury last year when he led the Big Ten with 1,213 yards receiving. He finished with 13 touchdowns in starting all 13 games.

The Bills round out the draft with three picks, a fourth- (109th) and two seventh-rounders (207th and 214th), on Sunday.

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