The Bills on Wednesday signed DE Terrence Fede to a one-year deal. Fede, 26, was a seventh-round pick of the Dolphins in 2014 who played in 51 games -- all as a reserve -- for Miami the past four seasons. He joins a competition at backup defensive end among Eddie Yarbrough, Owa Odighizuwa and Cap Capi.
The Patriots acquired the 23rd overall pick -- their second in the first round -- in exchange for Brandin Cooks. Could they be getting ready to move up the board for the next Jimmy Garoppolo?
The Bills' brass might say that they'd be comfortable at quarterback with AJ McCarron and Nathan Peterman. The numbers on that don't look great.
While each of their division rivals has made significant moves in free agency, the Patriots still appear to be the clear favorite in the AFC East.
The NFL announced Monday the Bills will begin their offseason program April 16. They'll conduct organized team activities May 22-24, May 29-31, June 4-5 and June 7-8. Their mandatory minicamp will be June 12-14.
Bills wide receiver Zay Jones tweeted Friday, "thankful to be alive," in his first public comments since being arrested last week in Los Angeles. Jones, whom police said was found breaking 30th-floor windows at an apartment complex, was later cleared of a vandalism charge because of a lack of evidence.
Star Lotulelei is expected to fill the run-stuffing role vacated when the Bills traded Marcell Dareus last season.
The Bills on Thursday signed CB Phillip Gaines, the team announced. Gaines, 26, was a third-round pick of the Chiefs in 2014 who started a total of 16 games the past four seasons. He adds much-needed depth behind starters Tre'Davious White and Vontae Davis.
Mel, Todd and Chris discuss what Odell Beckham Jr.'s value is in terms of draft capital (:45). Plus, they break down the draft strategy of the 49ers (25:40), Cardinals (30:50), Seahawks (34:32) and Rams (37:49).
The Bills on Thursday are signing WR Kaelin Clay, a source confirmed. Clay, 26, was traded from Carolina to the Bills last season. He played in four games, catching one pass for 28 yards, before being released and re-signing with the Panthers. Now he's back in Buffalo, where he could add speed and depth to a group of receivers in need of it. NFL Network first reported the signing.
Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly underwent a 12-hour surgery Wednesday night in New York to remove oral cancer and reconstruct his upper jaw.
The Bills' lease at New Era Field runs through 2023 and the team is unlikely to look to get out early, but a new stadium could happen down the road.
The Bills officially released veteran DE Ryan Davis on Monday, which cleared $670,000 in net cap space. They now have about $16.4 million in cap space with 67 players under contract. Davis, 29, signed a two-year deal last offseason and finished with three sacks. He was essentially pushed off the roster by recent free-agent signing Trent Murphy.
It doesn't help much now, but the controversial reversal of Kelvin Benjamin's TD catch against the Patriots would have stood under the new rules.
The Bills have the opportunity to opt out of their New Era Field lease in 2020 before it expires in 2023, but they will not opt out, a team spokesperson said Tuesday. Owner Terry Pegula, when asked about the possibility, told reporters at the owners meetings Tuesday, "We talk about that heavily internally, but not publicly." However, Pegula was only speaking generally about their future stadium plans. New Era Field, which is owned by Erie County, will enter its 46th season of use in 2018.
Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters Tuesday of his challenge decisions in 2017, "There were some that I thought were on point, and there were some where I thought I could have done a better job. And so that's a big deal. You just try to learn from every situation and take that type of approach. I've spent a lot of time here, the combine as well, talking to a lot of the veteran coaches, trying to take that opportunity, 'Hey, how do you do this? What's the best way to do that?' I don't think anybody has a perfect way to practice those situations, other than just get into a simulated deal in your office. That's what we do with our staff. I count on our staff on some of that."
In speaking Tuesday about the signing of running back Chris Ivory, coach Sean McDermott noted the "formula that goes into it," likely referring to how Ivory would not count as a free-agent addition in the 2019 compensatory draft-pick formula. That is true, as Ivory was released by his former team, but Buffalo is still not projected to receive any 2019 compensatory draft picks, according to OverTheCap.com. They have signed seven unrestricted free agents and only lost five; a net loss is required to receive compensatory draft picks. Therefore, that aspect of Ivory's signing will probably prove moot.
Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters Tuesday of RB Chris Ivory, "He's a veteran player. He's had success -- he had over 1,000 yards in one season with the Jets -- and so he can be the guy if we need him to be the guy, which is a nice luxury to have, to a point. At the same time, his skillset, he's so powerful and so physical that he's a tough load to bring down. Situationally, he'll give us some reps and put us in positions on those third-and-1s and fourth-and-1s to do some things for us. He can also catch the ball out of the backfield. We felt good about Chris."
Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters Tuesday of the progress of his team, "This build is taking time. We all wish we could snap our fingers and be there yesterday. But this is a process, as you've heard me say many times."
Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters Tuesday of his relationship with general manager Brandon Beane, "We are very much aligned and on the same page. We get along well ... We do have disagreements. But at the same time, any healthy conversation has some disagreements at time, or any healthy relationship. So at the end of the day, we're trying to put the best player or players on this football team to help us moving forward."
Asked about his quarterbacks, Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters at the owners meetings Tuesday that he is "excited" about AJ McCarron and Nate Peterman, noting that Peterman has worked with the "quarterback-type guys out there" and is looking to make a jump in his second season. McDermott pointed to McCarron's success in college and "having a chance to win" a playoff game for the Bengals. "Competition usually leads to greater things," he said.
Asked about the depth at wide receiver, Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters at the owners meetings Tuesday, "I like what we've got on our roster. I think there is ability there. We believe in those guys. Some are more household names than others. There are some young guys we are anxious to take a look at this spring and get them into Brian Daboll's system. I'm excited about that. And then our position in the draft, we're strategically at a good place now, and we'll see how that situation plays itself out."
Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters Tuesday about the arrest last week of WR Zay Jones, "It's an unfortunate situation. It's somewhat disappointing. But it's a situation, to me, that we can all take something from and learn from it." Jones was later cleared of a vandalism charge, and McDermott said he does not "foresee" discipline from the team. "This is the time of year ... where things happen. It's unfortunate. You would like the ability to have some form of structure, but those are the rules that are set forth, and we abide by those rules. This is the time of year that you just need to find a routine and stay disciplined with your routine."
Asked Monday at the owners meetings about the Bills' vacant starting middle linebacker position and the three free agents who visited last week, general manager Brandon Beane said, "We still haven't solidified that and come up with an agreement with any of those guys. Those guys all had good visits. But we have not filled that and I don't expect that to happen today. But we know that's a void that we got to work on." The Bills hosted free agents Will Compton, Kevin Minter and Karlos Dansby on visits.
Asked about trading up twice in the first round of April's draft, Bills general manager Brandon Beane told reporters at the owners meetings Monday, "I don't know. That is complex. Because you would have to have an agreement in place with both [teams] in order to do something like that. You never say never. If you trade to your example, No. 7, what if you get stuck there? Then what are you doing? What did you give up to do that? So you would have to know and have something prearranged to be able to do that. I'll always listen and be open to anything. I know everybody is assuming we trade up. We could always go the other way, too, if it made sense for us."
| TEAM | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New England | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 458 | 296 |
| Buffalo | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 302 | 359 |
| Miami | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 281 | 393 |
| New York | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 298 | 382 |
