Could the Buffalo Bills keep only three running backs on the roster?
With roster cutdowns around the corner, could the Buffalo Bills only keep three running backs on their regular season roster?
Over the next few weeks, the Buffalo Bills will have to cut the roster down to the league mandated 53 players. The depth the team has across the roster is going to cause some tough decisions and it will force them to get creative.
One of those positions is at wide receiver as the team has essentially five positions solidified with Stefon Diggs, John Brown, Cole Beasley and the two rookies Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins. The team has typically only kept six wide receivers and if that is the case it will likely go to Andre Roberts.
Roberts is one of the best returners in the NFL and the team likely wants to keep them. If the Bills keep only six and Roberts is that final pass catcher, they will then be forced to cut Duke Williams and Isaiah McKenzie. These two wide receivers have had really good camps and the Buffalo Bills may be forced to figure out a way to keep at least one.
Could the Buffalo Bills keep only three running backs?
Since Sean McDermott has taken over as head coach, the Buffalo Bills have had four running backs on the roster. It has typically consisted of two primary backs who have split carries, one reserve and then one player who primarily plays on special teams.
The Bills currently have a similar breakdown with Devin Singletary, rookie Zack Moss, veteran T.J. Yeldon and special teams ace Taiwan Jones. At this point, it would be almost a certainty that Christian Wade spends another year on the team’s practice squad.
There is a case that can be made to cut Yeldon since Singletary and Moss are expected to get almost all the touches out of the backfield this year.
If the Buffalo Bills were to cut Yeldon, they could keep a wide receiver like Isaiah McKenzie who has been a gadget player for this offense. He adds a different dynamic and allows Brian Daboll to add in some specific plays for him.
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If Singletary and Moss remain healthy the entire season, it would not be surprising that Isaiah McKenzie ends up with more touches than whoever the third running back is. The value McKenzie brings to the offense, as well as a backup returner, makes sense for the Buffalo Bills to create that roster space by keeping only three running backs.