4 Buffalo Bills likely to make 53-man roster because of contract

Dane Jackson

Dane Jackson has started 20 games over the past two seasons after being drafted in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft. While he struggled at times, Dane Jackson showed he could be a valuable depth option at cornerback for the Buffalo Bills.

This offseason Dane Jackson was set to be a restricted free agent and the Bills initially used an original round tender on Jackson. However, they were able to reach an agreement on a one-year deal that did lower his cap hit this season below the original round tender and the front office was able to save some of their cap space.

While Dane Jackson did take less salary, it is a fully guaranteed contract at $2.01 million. This means that the Bills don't really benefit in terms of cap space by releasing Jackson during the roster cutdown.

For a player who is only in his fourth season and already has 22 career starts while also knowing this defense well, his position on the 53-man roster should be relatively safe. Dane Jackson has a wide range of possibilities this season from being the starter to even being passed on the depth chart and falling towards the bottom.

However, if he is passed on the depth chart, the Bills would likely look to trade Jackson, as it does create over $1 million in cap space rather than cutting him.