The Buffalo Bills Most Exciting Free Agent Signing of the 2000’s
By Daniel Hahn
With the Bills’ 90-man roster complete, I am going to take a look at the Buffalo Bills’ free agent signing that got me the most excited throughout the years.
The Buffalo Bills have a hard time attracting free agents and that can make this time of year more frustrating than exciting. We are more accustomed to watching our promising players leave, than adding the high profile free agent.
This year featured more of the same. The Bills managed to sign Micah Hyde, Andre Holmes, Jordan Poyer, Mike Tolbert and Patrick Demarco, but none of those names are some of the best in the league.
With that said, I wanted to go back and think of the days when the Buffalo Bills surprised us and landed that big name free agent.
In my recent memory there have been signings like Takeo Spikes, Mario Williams, Doug Flutie and London Fletcher. Those players were high profile in production and could be argued to make the list of Bills best free agent signings.
There is a difference between the best signings and the ones you got most excited about when they happened, though..
For me the most excited I got was in 2009 when the Bills signed WR Terrell Owens. I remember exactly where I was when I got a text from one of my friends. My first reaction was to think I was being pranked because why would the biggest name wide receiver at that time want to come to Buffalo?
It was like a circus, and I would argue, put the reception Rex Ryan initially got to shame. Did the Bills sellout of season tickets immediately upon signing T.O? No. However, did Rex Ryan get a key to the city before playing a game? Absolutely not.
There were fans awaiting him at the airport, full featured interviews and even a VH1 reality show. That just doesn’t happen when you sign Corey Graham or Zach Brown. This was a rare, and maybe once in a lifetime high-profile signing.
Did you know that in 2009, the Buffalo Bills hadn’t made the playoffs since Doug Flutie was on the team? I bet none of you knew that because we don’t hear it every day when the Bills are mentioned right?
Yet what did Doug Flutie have that made him great, was it his instincts, his winning ability, or was it that he had Flutie Flakes?
Terrell Owens was on the tail end of his career when he signed with the Buffalo Bills. We weren’t expecting to get the best T.O. on the field. The Bills were going to make him a No. 2 WR and a mentor to young players, since they already had Lee Evans.
His impact was going to be more off the field, by teaching ‘how to win’ to a team who hadn’t made the playoffs in a long time.
His statistics were below T.O standards, but still very good when Trent Edwards/Ryan Fitzpatrick are your QBs. Owens made 55 receptions for 829 yards, and 5 touchdowns. More importantly, he served as a mentor to a young and impressionable Steve Johnson.
The signing of Terrell Owens lasted one year. In that one year, there was more excitement about him, than the entire Buffalo Bills tenure of a former #1 overall pick (Mario Williams) signed in free agency.
What I remember most about the Owens time in Buffalo, is that I still to this day believe it was a sincere joy to be a Buffalo Bill. He hasn’t talked negatively about his time in Buffalo since he left, he wasn’t overpaid significantly to sign in Buffalo and he didn’t get in trouble off the field.
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Using the Mario Williams example, he was a high profile signing. The fans didn’t get as excited about him because we all saw he got $100 million to come to Buffalo. His signing wasn’t to win or because he liked the team’s direction. He got overpaid to come to a place that needed talent, the Bills had to overbid themselves to convince him to be a Bill.
All I really know about him is he did like to hunt and helped plow Jim Kelly’s driveway one time. Other than that, he quit as fast as he could to get out of a 3-4 defense. It didn’t help, as he would sign with a divisional rival and have the same outcome.
As exciting as the Terrell Owens signing and fall out was, the playoff drought didn’t end. So get your popcorn ready as the team looks to make another run for the playoffs!
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What move are you hoping the Buffalo Bills make the most? Leave your thoughts below!