According to reports, it appears defensive end Shaq Lawson is heading towards free agency and won’t reach a new deal with the Buffalo Bills before.
After the news the Buffalo Bills had agreed to a three-year deal with Quinton Spain, the focus turned towards defensive end Shaq Lawson. He, along with Jordan Phillips, were the big names of players on the roster last year that had their contracts end at the end of the season.
Shaq Lawson started to cause a stir on social media when he posted a picture of himself in a Bills uniform from the Pittsburgh Steelers game.
Unfortunately, it appears that Bills’ fans won’t be getting good news before free agency opens up next week as Patrick Moran tweeted and Sal Capaccio of WGR550 confirmed, that Lawson is expecting to test free agency but there is potentially for him to eventually return.
Can confirm I've been told the same. Barring anything changing over the next couple of days, Shaq will be hitting free agency and testing the market. Doesn't mean he can't eventually return to the Bills, but (my opinion is) that will be unlikely. That said, give Pat his love. https://t.co/fNKQUA11ph
— Sal Capaccio 🏈 (@SalSports) March 14, 2020
The Buffalo Bills drafted Lawson in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft and the first few years in the league were rather lackluster. He only had 10 sacks in his first three years and didn’t really develop into that premier pass rusher the Bills had hoped for.
Based on his play to that point, the Bills decided prior to the 2019 season not to pick up his fifth year option, essentially making him a free agent at the end of the season. This past season Lawson seemed to turn a corner and had his best year in the NFL, highlighted by 6.5 sacks.
While Lawson may not be one of the big name free agent pass rushers this offseason, there is some belief that he is still expected to get a sizable pay increase. According to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, Lawson “should do well” and could be upwards of $12 million a season.
If that truly is the asking price for Lawson, then it is hard to imagine the Buffalo Bills meeting that number and bringing Shaq Lawson back next season.