Buffalo Bills Free Agency Update: Sunday, March 12th

Free agency has settled down the past few days, but will begin a second wave shortly. Here’s a recap of what the Buffalo Bills did this weekend.

The Buffalo Bills have had a pretty busy offseason so far as they attempt to rebuild this roster, starting with free agency. Most of the big signings have already been announced, but the team could still have one or two big moves up their sleeve.

So far, we have seen several additions and departures. Up until Friday, new faces included Mike Tolbert, Patrick DiMarco, Vladimir Ducasse, Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer and Steven Hauschka. Returnees included Tyrod Taylor and Colton Schmidt.

Departures included Marcus Easley, Marquise Goodwin, Robert Woods, Aaron Williams, Stephon Gilmore and Lerentee McCray.

Over the weekend, only a few announcements were made by the Buffalo Bills. Let’s take a look at what we haven’t covered yet.

Lorenzo Alexander

It was a stressful wait, but Lorenzo Alexander decided on Saturday that he will return to the Buffalo Bills. After finishing the 2016 season ranked third in sacks and being named the Defensive MVP of the Pro Bowl, the move made sense. He signed a 2-year, $9 million contract, keeping the deal team-friendly.

Alexander will be vital piece to the Bills’ success, both on and off the field. Zach Brown, you’re next.

Jordan Mills

This was a move that surprised just about everybody. In fact, it probably made a lot of Buffalo Bills‘ fans angry. After disappointing the Bills in 2016 as the team’s starting right tackle, I really hope they don’t plan on starting Jordan Mills again. Hopefully, he’s more of a plan “B.”

Mills signed a two-year, $4 million contract and I wouldn’t mind him as a backup. He was ranked the 64th offensive tackle in the league last season by Pro Football Focus.

Corey “Philly” Brown

Possibly the biggest announcement this weekend, next to Alexander’s, the Buffalo Bills have signed former Panthers’ receiver Corey Brown. He has experience with Coach McDermott and will come to a city in desperate need of receivers — which means he will have a chance to really shine.

The Bills now have 5 wide receivers under contract in Brown, Sammy Watkins, Kolby Listenbee, Dezmin Lewis and Walter Powell. They are still in need of a No. 2 wide receiver, which will likely come in the draft. I can see them trying to sign another depth receiver soon.

Brown caught 27 passes for 276 yards last season for the Panthers.

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Ryan Groy

Before free agency started, the Buffalo Bills placed an original tender on restricted free agent Ryan Groy. If the team is able to retain the guard, they would gain versatility on their offensive line in case of injuries. He could even be an option for starting center.

It has been reported by Adam Caplan that Groy has received interest from four different teams, although those teams weren’t named. If the Bills don’t retain him, they wouldn’t receive any compensation since he went undrafted.

Aaron Williams

We previously reported that the Buffalo Bills released fan-favorite Aaron Williams, but it was unsure whether he would be designated a post-June 1 cut or not. This weekend, we learned that he will be designated that, which means the Bills will save more money this season.

Instead of the team saving a little over $1 million this season, they will save $4.2 million. However, it will also come at a cap hit of $2.425 million in 2018. This was the better option for Buffalo, who could use all the help they could get right now — as far as cap space goes.

Corey Graham

Lastly, the Buffalo Bills announced that Corey Graham was released and will become a free agent. The team saved $4.05 million, which could be used to help other areas of need on the roster — ahem, bringing back Zach Brown.

Corey Graham had a solid three years for Buffalo, totaling 5 interceptions, 298 tackles and 4 fumble recoveries in that span. With the team signing Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, they will likely have big roles in McDermott’s defense next season.

I can smell some more signings and announcements being released very soon, so stay updated. Let’s hope they’re some good ones!

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What free agency signing/release are you most happy with so far this offseason? Leave your comments below!