TODAY, 6:50pm: The Bills have officially activated White from the reserve/PUP list, per the team.
MONDAY, 3:15pm: The Bills are leading the NFL in scoring defense without Tre’Davious White, but are moving closer to having their top cornerback in uniform. White will be activated Wednesday, The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia tweets.
While this move may be more formality than surefire sign the sixth-year corner will be in uniform soon, the Bills do not view his return as far away. Buffalo must activate White from its PUP list this week. Otherwise, he would miss all of the 2022 season. That was never a concern for Buffalo, which has proceeded cautiously with White.
White returned to practice Oct. 12, pointing to the Bills viewing their high-priced cover man as close. The AFC East leaders likely wanted to see White receive a few weeks’ worth of practice before activating him, explaining this near-three-week window between White’s designation for return and activation. But the team should be expected to have White back for the stretch run. White missing any more time would require the Bills to make him a gameday inactive.
Buffalo lost White to an ACL tear on Thanksgiving 2021, and the team missed the former first-round pick sorely in its shootout divisional-round loss to the Chiefs. The Bills have since drafted Kaiir Elam in the first round, using Dane Jackson and Taron Johnson as their other top corners. White stands to be an impact addition to a 6-1 team without a glaring need.
The Bills have Elam on a rookie deal through 2025. That stands to pair well with White’s $17.25MM-per-year accord, which runs through the ’25 season. White, 27, became one of the league’s top corners while on his rookie contract. He will represent a key piece to the AFC puzzle this season. With Micah Hyde out for the season and Jordan Poyer going down with an elbow injury, the Bills have some secondary issues to navigate as they attempt to secure their first No. 1 seed since 1993. But White’s return will strengthen the conference’s early frontrunner.