AFC East Notes: Bills, Hughes, Dolphins, Jets

During the Bills‘ sale process last year, several intriguing names surfaced as potential bidders, but no group ever emerged as a serious threat to Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula, who ultimately assumed control of the franchise. Months later, Tim Graham of the Buffalo News adds one more noteworthy name to the list of one-time suitors for the team. According to Graham, former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter explored the possibility of investing in the Bills while playing his final MLB season. Presumably, Jeter would have been a part of a larger group, considering the final sale price for the franchise was $1.4 billion.

While we try to wrap our heads around the idea of Jeter as a Bills shareholder, let’s check in on several more items from across the AFC East….

  • The Bills will have to think long and hard about whether or not edge defender Jerry Hughes is a good fit in Rex Ryan‘s defensive system, writes Mike Rodak of ESPN. If the free-agent-to-be, coming off consecutive seasons of 10+ sacks, is looking to be paid like a top-10 defensive end, that would mean an annual salary of $8.3MM+ and/or $20MM+ in guaranteed money. That seems a little too pricey if Hughes is relegated to a part-time pass rusher under Ryan.
  • Responding to a piece by his colleague Dave Hyde, Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel explores how difficult it would be to replace a handful of Dolphins starters if the team decides to cut them for cap purposes.
  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Field Yates takes a look at some good and bad cap situations around the NFL, identifying the Jets as a club with one of the most favorable outlooks.
  • If the Patriots cheated by deflating footballs in the AFC’s championships game, they’re hardly alone, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, who details a number of rules violations committed by other NFL teams over the years. Per Florio, the NFL is currently investigating four cases of game-integrity violations — Deflategate, the Browns’ sideline texting incident, the Falcons’ artificial crowd noise, and one unknown issue.
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