Bills Now Favorite To Land Kyle Juszczyk
Kyle Juszczyk has generated considerable interest venturing onto the free agent market for the first time, and a new suitor looks to have surged ahead for the fullback’s services. The Bills are now looking like the frontrunners to land the Ravens’ longtime blocking back, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
Juszczyk has drawn interest from the Browns as well, and the Ravens are attempting to work out a deal to retain him. He’s seeking a team that will allow him to play in some sort of hybrid role, with some tight end responsibilities tacked on to his fullback workload. Pro Football Focus graded Juszczyk as its No. 1 fullback in 2016, and he rates as PFR’s top available blocking back. It looks fairly secure Anthony Sherman‘s $2.1MM-AAV contract that tops all fullbacks will fall en route to Juszczyk becoming that position’s highest-paid performer.
He has 97 career receptions for 769 yards and five touchdowns. The former fourth-round pick started three seasons for the Ravens and earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2016. The Bills led the league in rushing in 2016 at 164.4 yards per game but overhauled their coaching staff this offseason, potentially paving a path to the team altering its backfield equation. Jerome Felton is a UFA after leading the way for LeSean McCoy the past two seasons.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/7/17
Unrestricted free agent news will obviously dominate the day, but several clubs also had to make decisions on whether to offer tenders to restricted and exclusive rights free agents. All RFA tenders listed are original round/right of first refusal (worth $1.797MM), and all links go to Twitter:
RFAs:
Tendered:
- Bengals — G T.J. Johnson (via Jim Owczarski of the Enquirer)
- Bills — C Ryan Groy (via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com)
- Buccaneers — DE Jacquies Smith (via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times)
- Giants — DE Kerry Wynn (via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com)
- Patriots — T Cameron Fleming (via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com)
- Rams — DT Dominique Easley (via Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com)
- Ravens – S Marqueston Huff (via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com); WR Michael Campanaro, T James Hurst, RB Terrance West (via Jeff Zriebec of the Baltimore Sun)
Non-Tendered:
- Bills — DE IK Enemkpali, P Colton Schmidt
- Broncos — OL Sam Brenner (via Mike Klis of 9NEWS)
- Chargers — WR Jeremy Butler (via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk)
- Seahawks — LB Brock Coyle, CB DeShawn Shead (via Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com)
ERFAs:
Tendered:
- Broncos — LB Zaire Anderson, OLB Shaquil Barrett, RB Kapri Bibbs, C James Ferentz, WR Bennie Fowler, LS Casey Kreiter, C Matt Paradis, WR Jordan Taylor (via Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post)
- Cardinals — QB Zac Dysert, DT Olsen Pierre, G/T John Wetzel (via Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com)
- Jaguars — S Peyton Thompson (via Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union)
- Lions — DE Brandon Copeland (via Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com)
- Packers — LB Joe Thomas (via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- Panthers — C Tyler Larsen, P Michael Palardy
- Patriots — CB Justin Coleman (via Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald), TE Matt Lengel (via Kevin Duffy of MassLive)
- Saints — WR Brandon Coleman (via Nick Underhill of the Advocate)
Non-Tendered:
- Buccaneers — DE Howard Jones (via Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times)
Bills Tender RFA RB Mike Gillislee
The Bills have assigned restricted free agent running back Mike Gillislee the original round/right of first refusal tender, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. As such, Gillislee is now slated to earn $1.797MM for the 2017 campaign, but Buffalo will attempt to hammer out an extension with its backup runner, per Rapoport.
[RELATED: Bills Interested In Kamar Aiken]
Typically, PFR won’t devote a full post to restricted free agents that aren’t tendered at the first- or second-round level. But Gillislee is an intriguing case, especially given that he could interest another team given the slight draft pick compensation attached to him. While the Bills reportedly don’t want to lose Gillislee, they haven’t placed much of a barrier between him and an offer sheet.
Because Gillislee was drafted in the fifth round, a rival club would only have to sacrifice a fifth-rounder in order to sign away the 26-year-old back. Buffalo would have the option of matching any contract offered by another team, but for another $1MM or so, the Bills could have placed the second-round tender on Gillislee and likely warded off any potential suitors. Gillislee, who appeared in 15 games last season, averaged an NFL-best 5.7 yards per carry on 101 attempts behind LeSean McCoy.
Of course, that extra $1MM could be important for the Bills this offseason, as the club only has about $22.5MM in cap space and several free agents — including Stephon Gilmore and Robert Woods — it could consider re-signing.
Bills Cut K Dan Carpenter, Others
The Bills announced that they have parted ways with a number of players, including kicker Dan Carpenter. Cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman, long snapper Garrison Sanborn, tight end Gerald Christian, and safety Phillip Thomas were also shown the door.
Buffalo’s kicker from 2013-16, Carpenter was slated to carry a $2.937MM cap number for 2017. In his first year with Buffalo, he nailed 92% of his field goal attempts. However, his numbers have been slipping in recent years. In 2015, he missed six of the recently-elongated extra points and bricked five more in 2016. Last year, Carpenter made only 76% of his field goal tries, so his release doesn’t come as a huge shock.
Collectively, these cuts will create $6.1MM in additional cap space for the Bills, inflating their total past $24MM.
Robey-Coleman served as a sporadic starter in Buffalo, breaking with the Bills’ first unit 15 times during his four seasons with the team. The 25-year-old former UDFA signed a two-year deal to stay in Buffalo in 2015, and this release could create a bit of a market for his services. He was set to make $2.1MM this season. Buffalo will save $1.65MM as a result of this release.
While profiling as a lower-tier player than Stephon Gilmore or Ronald Darby, Robey-Coleman graded out as the Bills’ best cornerback, per Pro Football Focus, in 2016. In 573 snaps, PFF slotted Buffalo’s slot man as its No. 33 overall corner. A former USC standout, Robey-Coleman intercepted two passes last season, forced a fumble and scored a defensive touchdown. As a result of this release, the Bills could well be without their Nos. 1 and 3 corners from 2016. Gilmore is expected to move on in free agency.
Sanborn spent eight seasons in Buffalo and was one of the team’s longest-tenured performers. The 31-year-old played his entire career up to this point with the Bills. Buffalo signed Reid Ferguson to a reserve/futures contract after the season, and it appears the team will go with a younger cog as its long snapper. He played in 128 straight games for the Bills dating back to the 2009 season.
Stephon Gillmore Likely To Receive Most Money Among 2017 UFA CBs
Stephon Gilmore delivered his finest statistical season during what amounted to his contract year in 2016, but the top Bills cornerback didn’t receive rave reviews from the analytics community. At least, not compared to the 2015 season, when Pro Football Focus viewed him as a top-20 corner. But Gilmore expected to be rewarded like a top-flight cover man, with Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com noting he will likely receive the largest contract among this year’s UFA corners.
Bills Interested In Jack Crawford
- Cowboys defensive end Jack Crawford has interest from roughly five teams, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets. There’s a chance he could return to Dallas, but the Colts, Bills, and Jaguars are also in play for his services. Last year, Crawford re-signed with the Cowboys on a one-year, $1.1MM deal with a $240K signing bonus. This time around, he could command more money. Crawford, 29 in September, made a career-high eleven starts in 2016 and had 25 tackles with 3.5 sacks.
Ravens WR Kamar Aiken Drawing Interest
Wide receiver Kamar Aiken has roughly six teams interested in him, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets. The Bills, Browns, and Seahawks appear to be the strongest candidates for his services at this time. It’s not immediately clear whether the incumbent Ravens are among the teams with interest. 
Late last month, we ranked Aiken as one of the 15 best wide receivers available. However, he’s not exactly coming off of a banner year. Aiken was a central piece in the Baltimore offense in 2015 with 75 receptions (127 targets), 944 yards, and five touchdowns. This past year, his numbers dropped dramatically as he recorded just 50 targets, 29 receptions, 328 yards, and only one TD. He also had just six starts as opposed to his 14 in the previous campaign.
During the season, Aiken lobbied offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg for an increased role. Nothing came of those talks and Mornhinweg will return for another season, so we probably shouldn’t bank on a reunion.
Latest On QB Market
There are a lot of moving pieces in this year’s quarterback market, and the Patriots’ Jimmy Garoppolo, despite recent reports suggesting he would not be traded, remains the forefront of the discussion. Per Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, New England is willing to deal Garoppolo, but the team has not yet received an offer approaching its asking price for Tom Brady‘s top backup. Howe writes that the current asking price is believed to be a first- and second-round draft pick, but the Patriots will not simply flip Garoppolo to the highest bidder. If the team is not “properly compensated,” they will not make a deal.
Meanwhile, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes that the Bills are not expected to retain Tyrod Taylor under his current contract (we heard several days ago that Buffalo was leaning against keeping Taylor, though there is a split among the club’s top decision-makers in that regard). Assuming Taylor does hit the open market, La Canfora expects the Browns to emerge as the front-runner for his services. Indeed, Taylor has strong ties to some members of the Browns staff already, and if Cleveland is able to acquire him, the club could use its two first-round selections on the best player available and would not have to reach for a quarterback or deal one (or both) picks for Garoppolo.
La Canfora also reports that the Bears have the strongest interest in Mike Glennon at the moment, and sources around the league believe Chicago will push hard to acquire him. The Bears also love Garoppolo, but they do not want to meet the Patriots’ asking price (all of that is consistent with reports that our Sam Robinson passed along last night). La Canfora projects Glennon, who turned down an $8MM/year offer from Tampa Bay, to receive an incentive-laden contract with an AAV of around $12MM.
Interestingly, Glennon has no official agent at this point, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. That’s significant because when the “legal tampering” period opens on Tuesday, teams can negotiate with agents representing free agents, but not with the free agents directly. Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets that teams with interest in Glennon are working under the assumption that David Dunn is his agent.
Bills Split On Tyrod Taylor Decision
The sense at the scouting combine is that the Bills are “leaning against” keeping Tyrod Taylor, Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News tells WGRZ (video link). The Bills would be willing to keep Taylor if the option were not for such a high price, he adds. 
Meanwhile, the front office and the coaching staff are at odds about how to handle Taylor, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com hears. Top decision makers like GM Doug Whaley, senior VP of football administration Jim Overdorf, and team president Russ Brandon have decided that they don’t want to continue with Taylor and would prefer veteran options like Tony Romo and Brian Hoyer. However, new head coach Sean McDermott isn’t sure the team can find a better QB than Taylor and wouldn’t mind paying him $17MM/year.
If Taylor hits the open market, the Browns, 49ers, and Jets will be among the teams with interest.
Bills, Mike Gillislee In Talks
- The Bills and restricted free agent running back Mike Gillislee are amid discussions regarding a long-term agreement. Even though he’s stuck behind LeSean McCoy in Buffalo, Gillislee would like to spend the rest of his career there, per Pauline. Gillislee has been quietly excellent with the Bills the past two seasons, having averaged 5.7 yards per carry and scored 11 touchdowns on 148 rushes.
[SOURCE LINK]