Bills coach Rex Ryan indicated that he has some pause about keeping kicker Dan Carpenter for next season, although it would take a worthy replacement to push him off the roster, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com writes. Carpenter has now missed five extra points on the season.
After converting 91.7% of his field goals upon arriving in Buffalo in 2013, Carpenter signed a four-year extension in March 2014 that included $2.15MM in guaranteed money. The Bills can save $1.7625MM by cutting Carpenter after this season, including a $250K roster bonus that they can avoid paying if he’s released prior to the seventh day of the 2016 league year.
As Tyler Dunne of The Buffalo News details, Ryan provided a few more noteworthy tidbits on the Bills this week, so let’s round them up…
- Ryan expects running back Mike Gillislee to be a part of next year’s roster. “Without question, he’s a guy, him, Karlos [Williams], LeSean McCoy, we’re in good hands there” Ryan said. “Maybe we look to expand his role on special teams. Could be something we look into.”
- Asked about Percy Harvin, Ryan said he has talked to the wide receiver once and texted with him a few times and “gets the sense” he wants to play. There were rumors earlier in the season that Harvin was contemplating retirement.
- Wide receiver Marcus Easley was placed on injured reserve by the Bills this week, and it sounds like he’ll have a long road back to full health. Calling the knee injury a “major, major” one, Ryan explained that Easley dislocated his knee cap and broke his knee in three spots.