At one point, the Bills had a fantastic secondary that was led by cornerback Tre’Davious White, whom Buffalo drafted in 2017 in Sean McDermott’s first year with the Bills. Little did we know that White would be one of the first players to help turn the culture around in Buffalo and become a shutdown corner.
Unfortunately, White suffered a brutal torn ACL injury in November of 2021 and would then tear his achilles two years later in October of 2023. After White was ruled out for the remainder of the 2023 season, the Bills had a desperate need at corner and Brandon Beane made a last minute trade acquisition to bring cornerback Rasul Douglas to Buffalo from the Green Bay Packers at the trade deadline.
In eight games started with the Bills in 2023, Douglas recorded 4 interceptions (2 in two different games against the Patriots and Jets). He provided instant stability to a secondary that was still trying to figure out whether or not Kaiir Elam could live up to a first-round pick status. However, the Bills found a diamond in the rough with Christian Benford who was a lockdown corner in 2024.
While Douglas wasn’t a liability in 2024, he was not the star player that Bills fans got a glimpse at in 2023. He had his rough moments of giving up big catches, especially in Week 14 against the Los Angeles Rams.
He is set to hit free agency next month and Brandon Beane has a tough decision to make on whether or not they try to get Douglas back, or letting him walk somewhere else. According to Spotrac, Douglas’ market value currently stands at $11.9 million per year and is estimated to land a 3 year, $35 million deal in free agency. If that stays true, Bills fans can expect Douglas to be back in Western New York for 2025.
4 teams who could sign Rasul Douglas way from Bills in free agency
Miami Dolphins
Sticking within the AFC East, the Dolphins recently released cornerback Kendall Fuller this past Friday but they still have Jalen Ramsey on the roster as their number one. Them bringing in Douglas not only fixes their CB2 spot, but it weakens the Bills’ secondary for sure.
Given he fact that Josh Allen has been able to put on a dominant performance against the Dolphins throughout his career, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Miami look to bring in someone who knows Allen very well. I mean, they tried it with Jordan Poyer last offseason but that failed miserably.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Back-to-back Florida teams on this list with the Dolphins and now the Jacksonville Jaguars. Heading into a rebuild setup with a new head coach in Liam Coen, the Jaguars could use any sort of help on either side of the ball. However, their pass defense was absolutely atrocious in 2024.
They gave up just under 260 yards through the air per game and their defense has been no support to help Trevor Lawrence and the offense. Douglas won’t be a long-term solution, but he is an immediate bandaid who can provide a little stability while Jacksonville goes out and finds young players to develop behind someone like Douglas.
New Orleans Saints
Just like the Jaguars, the New Orleans Saints are starting from scratch with a new head coach in Kellen Moore, who is coming off a Super Bowl celebration with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Saints traded Marshon Lattimore at the trade deadline to the Washington Commanders and will need to find some sort of improvement on the backend of their defense.
Minnesota Vikings
Going 14-3 and not getting the No. 1 seed in the NFC and then to be bounced out of the first round by the Los Angeles Rams is a huge nightmare for the Vikings. Even though defensive coordinator Brian Flores built up a fantastic defense in 2024, their pass defense needs improvement if they want to go far in the playoffs.
Minnesota’s defense only gave up 242 yards in the air per game, but the final stretch before the playoffs was rough for them. From Week 12 and on, the Vikings defense gave up 350+ passing yards in five of their last seven regular season games. Given what kind of defense Flores runs, Douglas would be almost a perfect fit for the Vikings in both pass coverage and stopping the run.