It was a tough reality to accept that Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde were not going to be members of the Buffalo Bills going into last season. The Bills released Poyer (and he eventually signed with Miami) and Hyde played out the last year of his contract. While Hyde did sign with the Bills’ practice squad, he never made an appearance in 2024 with the Bills.
Buffalo brought back Taylor Rapp on a three-year deal to be the team’s No. 1 safety and they then had Damar Hamlin. In last year’s NFL Draft, Buffalo selected Cole Bishop out of Utah as someone who could be a great run-stopper safety.
Bishop suffered an injury early on in training camp last year and even though he only missed one game, it took him quite awhile to hit his stride near the end of the season. He showed bits of promise at the end of the regular season and the playoffs. Now the hope is that he can stay on the field consistently as a starter and bring some stability to the secondary.
Cole Bishop listed as under-the-radar player to hopefully shine in 2025
Zachary Pereles from NFL.com recently listed 50 under-the-radar players going into the 2025 season that fans should be keeping an eye on and Bishop is representing the Bills on this list. Here’s what Pereles said about Bishop:
"The Bills are desperate for better safety play after last year's starters -- Damar Hamlin and Taylor Rapp -- graded out as PFF's 42nd- and 45th-best safeties out of the 55 who played at least 700 snaps. That's where Buffalo hopes Bishop steps in. The 2024 second-round pick picked up a shoulder injury in training camp last year, stunting his development. With a full offseason, Bishop should be in line to take over as a starter."Zachary Pereles, NFL.com
Buffalo’s secondary was a weakness for sure going into this past offseason, but the Bills addressed cornerback more than they did at safety. All that they did was bring back Damar Hamlin and signed Darrick Forrest (both whom only got one-year deals). The hope should be to see if Bishop can develop while having a little bit of stability already with Rapp.
Bishop has a year under his belt and knows the defense going into this season. Let’s hope that he can help Bills fans move on from the Poyer/Hyde duo and become a star in Buffalo sooner than later.