Buffalo Bills Ready to Trade Stevie Johnson?
By Nate Gerst
Aug 24, 2013; Landover, MD, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stevie Johnson (13) loses control of the ball while being hit by Washington Redskins linebacker Bryan Kehl (53) at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
We have all seen the ups and downs of Stevie Johnson in Buffalo. Many who aren’t fans of Buffalo remember his wide open drop against Steelers a few years ago or pretending to be Plaxico Burress shooting himself in the leg during a celebration dance. However, if you’re a fan of Buffalo you know the upside of Johnson. He is the only receiver who has produced against Revis time and time again and the only receiver in Bills history to record three consecutive years of 1,000 receiving yards or more. He caught the game winning pass in the 2013 game against the Panthers, and of course there is the fact that he is Stevie Johnson and a fun guy who loves the fans and loves Buffalo. However, many of us must remember this is a business and sometimes a business must let the fan loving good guy go.
After the 2013 season many analyst suggested Stevie Johnson may not be back in Buffalo for the 2014 season. If you look at it from a business stand point it makes sense. Johnson isn’t a #1 wide receiver that Buffalo has tried to make him time and time again and he is set to make upwards of $8.5 million for the 2014 season. If you look at it from a fan prospective many will say well Buffalo has the money and why would they part ways with one of their most talents wide receivers.
Just last week Buffalo signed Mike Williams and it looked like the Johnson trade talk was gone. Williams is a guy who has had a troubled past but if you look at his numbers they are very similar to Johnson’s. Like Johnson, Williams is a true #2 receiver in the NFL and with the addition the wide receiver group has become very crowded with the key players being Johnson, Goodwin, Woods, and now Williams.
Does the addition of Williams help or hurt Johnson? After thinking about it a lot I believe Buffalo has two options. First, they aren’t going to add a true #1 wide receiver in the draft and they are going to stick with Johnson, Williams, Woods, Goodwin and possible Graham or some other wide receiver for the 2014 season. The other option is draft Mike Evans or another true #1 wide receiver in the first or second round of this year’s draft and trade Johnson to a team like Carolina who is in need of wide receivers for a 3rd round pick.
So fans I ask you is a Stevie Johnson trade a good idea or should the analyst stop thinking about the trade and focus on the talent the Buffalo Bills already have?