Buffalo Bills: 7 trades the team could explore this offseason
Trade for Martavis Bryant
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Bills tried to acquire Martavis Bryant from the Steelers last season to bolster their receiving corps. It would be a good idea for the team to attempt to go after Bryant again due to the emergence of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Antonio Brown still being the best receiver in football.
While the team’s history in trading up/for Clemson wide receivers is not sparkling, all of the pressure is not on Bryant to immediately be the guy. Kelvin Benjamin will begin his first full season with the team in 2018 and is also entering a contract year. While Benjamin is an inch taller than Bryant at 6-foot-5, the two have remarkably different games.
Bryant is speed, speed, and a little more speed. His ability to get behind secondaries is something that this team desperately needs to add to make their offense more complete. Zay Jones appears to be more of a slot receiver and Benjamin is a big body on the outside, so having a speed option for the Bills is something they need to add to solidify the position.
Despite being a special talent, Bryant has his fair share of issues off the field. He missed the 2016 season due to a marijuana suspension and has been suspended by the league on two other occasions. These red flags don’t appear to be what McDermott and Beane look for in a player, but if they were willing to kick the tires on a trade before, why would that be any different now?
This could also be an enticing option for Bryant. Stuck as now the fourth receiving option in Pittsburgh behind Brown, Smith-Schuster, and Le’Veon Bell, Bryant is also playing with an aging quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger. Coming to Buffalo could be the opportunity he covets to establish himself as not only a top two option on a team’s offense, but a premier number one option in the Bills passing game.
In his rookie season of 2014, Bryant put up elite receiving numbers. Bryant recorded 26 receptions for 549 yards and an astounding eight touchdowns over a 10-game span as a rookie. His yards/reception was an astonishing 21.1 yards. In the following two seasons in which he played, he recorded 50 receptions in each, but his touchdowns and yards declined in each season.
All of these stats show that Bryant has the big play capabilities that this team needs. Even if he doesn’t become the top receiving threat for the Bills, he would help provide coverage relief for other receivers and help the run game by drawing defenders out of the box.
Potential price: Third or fourth-round pick