Bills Sign LS Reid Ferguson To Extension
The Bills have re-signed long snapper Reid Ferguson to a three-year extension, according to a team announcement. Ferguson was set to be an exclusive rights free agent this offseason, meaning that he would not have reached the open market, unless the Bills renounced his rights. 
It’s early in the offseason, but the Bills have already started taking care of in-house matters. Earlier this month, the Bills signed Lorenzo Alexander to a new one-year deal and inked offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles to a fresh one-year pact.
The Bills’ list of free agents is rapidly dwindling, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes. Here’s the full rundown of the Bills’ FAs-to-be, as of this writing:
Unrestricted Free Agents
- RB Taiwan Jones
- WR Deonte Thompson
- OL Ryan Groy
- OL John Miller
- OL Jordan Mills
- DT Jordan Phillips
Restricted Free Agents
- TE Logan Thomas
- CB Lafayette Pitts
Exclusive Rights Free Agents
- DE Eddie Yarbrough
- LB Deon Lacey
- P Matt Darr
Kyle Williams Won't Un-Retire
- Bills defensive tackle Kyle Williams has no intention of reversing his decision to retire, as he tells Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (Twitter link). “I make a decision, I’ve got to go with it…” said Williams. “You couldn’t dream about coming back and trying to replicate [my final game]. That was such a great day. It’s something I’ll remember forever.” Williams, 35, spent the entirety of his 13-year career in Buffalo, appearing in 178 games during that time.
Bills Could Promote Chad Hall To WR Coach
- Alex Marvez of SiriusXM NFL Radio tweets that the Bills could promote offensive assistant Chad Hall to wide receivers coach to replace Terry Robiskie, who recently joined the Jaguars’ coaching staff.
Bills’ Alexander Likely To Retire After Season
This week, Lorenzo Alexander agreed to a new deal with the Bills that will keep him away from free agency in March. It also sounds like this will be his last contract, period. 
“If you ask me today, yeah, this is my last year,” Alexander said (via Nick Veronica of the Buffalo News). “At some point you’ve got to eventually walk away from the game and start the second half of your life. Obviously, I’ve got a lot of life to live and there are other things I want to do. I have four kids that I want to be a part of what they’re doing, whether that’s Little League sports, dance, soccer, whatever that may look like.”
Alexander, who turns 36 in May, ranked eighth on the team in both defensive snaps played (62%) and special teams snaps played (39%). He also finished out with the second-highest Pro Football Focus score of any Bills player last season at 85.7 and finished with the second-most sacks on the team. Defensive end Jerry Hughes was the only teammate to finish higher than him in those categories.
Alexander’s new deal can pay him up to $4.55MM and carries a base value of $3MM. Given his past production and the league’s tendency to pay handsomely for pass rushers, one has to imagine that Alexander would have gotten more on the open market.
In addition to spending more time with the family, Alexander says he would like to go into broadcasting after his playing career is through.
Bills Sign Lorenzo Alexander To Extension
Linebacker Lorenzo Alexander signed a one-year contract extension with the Bills, according to a team announcement. The new deal will keep Alexander in Buffalo through 2019, his age-36 season. 
Alexander’s one-year extension has a max value of $4.55MM, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The base value of the pact is $3MM, including a $550K signing bonus.
Alexander first joined the Bills in 2016 as a well-traveled veteran who could provide depth and special teams help. As it turns out, he brought much more to the table.
Since signing with Buffalo three years ago, Alexander has started in 35 games, recorded 22 sacks, and made three interceptions. He made the Pro Bowl in 2016 and, last season, he was elected to be a team captain.
His 12.5 sacks in 2016 were especially impressive, but he quietly had another strong year in 2018. His 6.5 sacks were second only to Jerry Hughes (7) and his 73 tackles put him in Buffalo’s top five.
In 2018, Pro Football Focus ranked Alexander as the fourth-best linebacker in the entire NFL. He placed behind only Bobby Wagner, Luke Kuechly, and Zach Brown.
Alexander would have had plenty of suitors in March, but he made it clear that he wanted to stay in Buffalo.
“Obviously, I’m invested,” Alexander said earlier this month when asked about re-signing with the Bills. “I’ve been here three years, I’m invested in the community. I’m invested in this team and this organization. I would like to be able to continue to play here and be able to retire here.”
Bills Sign Jeremiah Sirles To Extension
The Bills signed offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles to a one-year extension, the team announced on Wednesday. Given Sirles’ lack of playing time in 2018, the news comes as something of a surprise. 
Sirles suited up in 12 games for the Bills and took most of his snaps at right guard. His 140 snaps were not enough to qualify for Pro Football Focus’ rankings, but if they were, Sirles’ score would have placed him in the bottom 25% of guards.
Before joining the Bills in September, Sirles spent the previous two years with the Vikings. Due to injuries, Sirles started ten games in 2016 and made four starts in 2017. The 6’6″ lineman also has experience at right tackle, though he has been playing primarily on the inside over the last two seasons.
Bills Hire 2 New Staffers
- The Bills interviewed veteran offensive line coach Joe Philbin recently but will instead name Bobby Johnson as their new O-line coach, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM reports (on Twitter). This will be Johnson’s second stint in Buffalo, the first coming under Chan Gailey. Johnson’s last role in Buffalo was assistant O-line coach. In 2018, he served in that role under since-jettisoned Colts offensive line coach Dave DeGuglielmo. Johnson will relocate quickly. DeGuglielmo remains unattached.
- A higher-profile Buffalo staff vacancy will be filled as well. The Bills are hiring former Panthers assistant Heath Farwell to run their special teams, Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer tweets. The 10-year NFL veteran served as an assistant ST coach with Seattle and Carolina, his Panthers tenure coming after Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott had already departed for Buffalo.
Bills, Browns Interview Joe Philbin
In addition to interviewing with the Vikings, Joe Philbin took part in meetings with the Bills and Browns, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports.
The interview with Minnesota was for the franchise’s offensive line coach job; it’s not clear what position(s) Philbin discussed with Buffalo and Cleveland. The latter, however, filled its offensive line coach position with James Campen on Monday.
The Browns fired O-line coach Bob Wylie last week. After firing Juan Castillo, the Bills are still believed to need an offensive line coach. Buffalo also appears to have, according to Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (on Twitter) parted ways with assistant O-line coach Andrew Dees and offensive assistant William Vlachos.
Philbin spent the 2018 season as the Packers’ offensive coordinator and interim head coach. Green Bay interviewed Philbin and hired Matt LaFleur for the full-time HC job, triggering an extensive Philbin interview circuit. The 57-year-old coach served as the Packers’ OC twice and was the Dolphins’ head coach from 2012-15. He coached tight ends and the offensive line in Green Bay and coached Indianapolis’ O-line from 2016-17.
NFC South Notes: Bucs, Falcons, Panthers
New Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich will call plays in Tampa Bay, head coach Bruce Arians told The Rich Eisen Show (Twitter link via Thomas Bassinger of the Tampa Bay Times). That’s something of a surprise, as Arians led the offense when he was the Cardinals’ head coach. Leftwich took over as Arizona’s OC after Mike McCoy was fired four games into the 2018 campaign, but he couldn’t get the Cardinals out of the NFL rankings cellar in terms of points and yards. Arians will still have a heavy hand in Tampa Bay’s offense, while new run game coordinator Harold Goodwin will also have input.
Here’s more from the NFC South:
- Former Redskins special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica has joined the Falcons in the same capacity, Atlanta announced today. He’ll replace Keith Armstrong, who was one of three Atlanta coordinators fired after the 2018 campaign. Washington ranked two spots higher in special teams DVOA than Atlanta a season ago, per Football Outsiders, finishing with better results in kickoffs and punt returns. Kotwica has worked in the NFL since 2007, working his way up from quality control coach to special teams coordinator with the Jets.
- Armstrong, meanwhile, will take over as the Buccaneers‘ new special teams coach, tweets Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. He’d been linked to Tampa Bay ever since Arians was rumored to be taking the head coaching position, and for good reason: as Auman notes, Armstrong played for Arians at Temple 35 years ago. Armstrong, who was a candidate for the Cardinals’ head coaching job in 2018, was fired by the Falcons last week, but quickly interviewed for a gig with the Bills before landing with the Buccaneers.
- The Buccaneers have hired former Broncos offensive line coach Sean Kugler for the same position, reports Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). The Bills also had interest in interviewing Kugler before he signed on with Tampa Bay, according to Ryan Talbot of New York Upstate. Kugler, previously the head coach at UTEP, joined Denver in 2018 and guided a Broncos front five which ranked as a top-12 unit in both adjusted line yards and adjusted sack rate. Other Tampa Bay hires include former Jets coach Mike Caldwell (linebackers) and ex-Cardinals coach Rick Christophel (tight ends), per Auman (Twitter links).
- After being fired by the Jaguars last week, Perry Fewell is interviewing for the Panthers‘ secondary coach job on Wednesday, tweets Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer. A former defensive coordinator for the Bills and Giants, Fewell worked with Carolina coach head coach Ron Rivera in Chicago in 2005. The Panthers still have Richard Rodgers in place as a secondary coach, but they’ve lost multiple defensive backs coach within the past year. Curtis Fuller resigned as the team’s secondary coach last summer, while assistant Jeff Imamura was fired as part of a housecleaning in early December.
AFC East Notes: Dolphins, Rizzi, Bills, Jets
The Dolphins are one of three teams which still has yet to hire a new head coach, but they will meet with another potential Adam Gase replacement this week. Incumbent special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi will interview for the position on Friday, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. As Garafolo adds, other candidates that Miami has met with are still coaching in the postseason, so the club may not announce its next head coach any time soon. A former collegiate head coach at New Haven and Rhode Island, Rizzi is the only internal candidate the Dolphins are considering. Rizzi, 48, has been with the Dolphins since 2010, and last year led Miami to a No. 21 ranking in special teams DVOA.
Here’s more from the AFC East:
- Ex-Falcons special teams coach Keith Armstrong recently interviewed for the same role with the Bills, reports Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Armstrong, who had been Atlanta’s ST coach since 2008, was fired last week as the Falcons cleared out each of their coordinator roles. Based purely on performance, Armstrong posted a strong effort in 2018, as Atlanta ranked 10th in special teams DVOA. The 55-year-old Armstrong took two interviews for the Cardinals’ head coaching job last season, and was one of two candidates Bruce Arians personally recommended as a successor (the other being incumbent DC James Bettcher). He’s also been linked to Tampa Bay, where Arians is now head coach.
- Quincy Enunwa‘s four-year extension with the Jets is worth $33.4MM in total and contains $10MM in full guarantees, per Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The 26-year-old wide receiver received a $9MM signing bonus, meaning his remaining guarantee will likely come via his 2019 base salary. Enunwa will collect a $6MM base salary in 2020, but that figure — for the time being — guaranteed for injury only. It’ll become fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2020 league year.
- In case you missed it, Cowboys defensive backs coach Kris Richard may not be a serious contender for the Jets‘ head coaching job, but he could the favorite to land the top gig with the Dolphins.