There’s no question the Buffalo Bills need to improve in their secondary this off-season. The only question is, who do they spend up for? With the salary cap rising to $279.2M, the Bills will have a little more cap flexibility than we thought they would, and they may need to replace Rasul Douglas, who’s a pending free agent.
The Bills seem to be over the cap by $10M, as Spotrac projects. In this article, we’ll rank three free agent corners the Bills should sign.
Charvarius Ward
Starting off strong with the former San Francisco 49ers cornerback, Ward had a down year in 2024 and is looking for a bounce-back season in 2025. Coming off of a 2023 season where he had five interceptions and 23 passes defended, Ward would end 2024 with zero interceptions and seven passes defended. Spotrac projects his next contract to be three years/$45.8M with an average of $15M per year.
DJ Reed
The Bills need a lockdown corner like Reed, who allowed 419 yards and two touchdowns on 36 receptions, per PlayerProfiler. Reed, 28, would be a perfect replacement for Douglas, who’s a couple of years younger and still has some quality years left ahead of him.
Reed is due for a payday this year, and you can almost guarantee it won’t be from his former team, the New York Jets. It’s safe to say Reed wants to go to a contender, and the Bills have a glaring need at the position with money to spend. Reed likely will demand a contract in the range of $14.7M per year, with Spotrac projecting him to sign a four-year/$58.6M deal.
Jonathan Jones
Finally, the Bills land a two-time Super Bowl champion. The Bills would be making another inter-division signing here in Jonathan Jones. Jones, 31, wouldn’t be signed as a starter, but someone who can push Kaiir Elam out of Buffalo. He would be a solid depth piece that has plenty of starting experience should the Bills need him in a pinch.
In nine years with the New England Patriots, Jones totaled 11 interceptions, 57 passes defended, and 436 tackles. Jones is one of the cheaper corners available, and turning 32 years old when the season begins, the Bills would be able to get him on a very cheap contract while wiping their hands clean from Elam. Spotrac has Jones signing a two-year/$5.6M deal, giving the Bills plenty of flexibility to make other moves.