Bills Promote Rookie Outside Linebacker
- The Bills promoted outside linebacker Bryson Albright from the practice squad, Joe Buscaglia of WKBW reports (on Twitter). A UDFA from Miami (Ohio) University, Albright has spent the season on Buffalo’s taxi squad and has yet to play in an NFL game.
Bills Won't Play Cardale Jones This Year
- Bills GM Doug Whaley says he does not want to see rookie quarterback Cardale Jones to play at any point this season (Twitter link via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com). “That would mean something terrible happened,” the GM said. The 6-6 Bills have had issues in the passing game, but they apparently won’t turn things over to Jones over the final month. Whaley raised some eyebrows today when he declined to commit to Tyrod Taylor for next season.
Bills GM Refuses To Commit To Tyrod Taylor
The Bills have a big decision to make at the quarterback position this offseason. When asked about whether the team will retain Tyrod Taylor for 2017, GM Doug Whaley told WGR 550 that no decision has been made (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak). He added that he will sit down with coaches and ownership after the season to make the call. 
“He’s got four more games to write this chapter. Then after this season, like everybody on the team, we’re going to do an evaluation and then we’ll go from there,” Whaley said.
The Bills have a tough call to make. On one hand, quarterbacks aren’t easy to find. On the other hand, the Bills currently have the league’s worst passing offense. Taylor had a strong 2015, but keeping him beyond this year will mean kickstarting a new five-year, $80MM+ deal. If the contract is exercised, the Bills would be on the hook for a whopping $30.75MM fully guaranteed at signing.
All in all, Taylor’s deal was drawn up to be a team-friendly pact if he built on his trajectory from 2015. But, given that he has been up-and-down this year (and mostly down as of late), the decision has become much more complicated. Further muddling the situation is the questionable job security of Whaley and Rex Ryan. Whaley says that he will make the call with Ryan and the Pegula family, but the GM and coach may not be at the table if the Bills cannot qualify for the playoffs.
The Bills are now 6-6 after an ugly implosion against the Raiders. Buffalo likely has to run the table to get to the postseason and that means they’ll have to beat the Steelers on Sunday and the Dolphins on Dec. 24. On the plus side, their other two games come against the Browns (Dec. 18) and the Jets (Jan. 1).
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/7/2016
Today’s practice squad moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: CB Charles Gaines
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: S Justin Currie
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: S Stefan McClure
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: TE E.J. Bibbs
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: OT Rob Crisp
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: CB Brandon Dixon
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: CB Randall Evans
Pollard Alliance Releases HC Candidates List
The Fritz Pollard Alliance Foundation typically releases its list of recommended minority head coaching candidates in January. This year, we have an early preview of the list, courtesy of Tom Pelissero of USA Today. This year’s suggested candidates will include Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, Bills offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn, Cardinals OC Harold Goodwin, and Vikings DC George Edwards. 
Austin was a popular candidate for coaching vacancies last year but ultimately did not find a head coaching gig. After interviewing with the Browns, Dolphins, Giants, and Eagles, Austin indicated that he felt only two of the interviews were “legitimate” while the other two were only done to satisfy the Rooney Rule, which stipulates that a minority candidate must be interviewed for every job. Since the Browns hired a black coach in Hue Jackson, Austin presumably isn’t accusing Cleveland of interviewing him to fulfill the requirement.
The Bills installed Lynn as their OC in September after ousting Greg Roman. The Bills have been up-and-down this year, but they now stand at 6-6 despite injuries to key players. Lynn has had to run the Bills’ offense without star wide receiver Sammy Watkins for much of the year and teams will certainly take notice of his capable job despite the less-than-ideal circumstances.
Goodwin has made no secret of his desire to land a head coaching job. However, there are some factors working against him. First, the Cardinals offense has struggled this season. Secondly, despite rave reviews from those around him, Goodwin does not call the plays in Arizona, and that could deter interested teams.
Edwards was placed on the Pollard list for the first time last year and he returns this season. Like Goodwin, he does not call plays for his team despite the coordinator title. However, he comes with a strong recommendation from head coach Mike Zimmer and he did call the plays against the Cowboys when Zimmer was recovering from surgery. With Edwards at the wheel, the Vikings allowed just 17 points against one of the league’s most electric offenses.
The foundation also released a list of general manager candidates including Giants VP of player evaluation Marc Ross, Raiders director of player personnel Joey Clinkscales, former Lions GM and current Giants exec Martin Mayhew, and Eagles director of college scouting Trey Brown.
Bills Face Decision On Tyrod Taylor
- The Bills face a dilemma next spring, as they must choose whether to exercise an option on quarterback Tyrod Taylor that would lock in more than $30MM in guarantees, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com writes. Taylor has performed at a slightly below average level this year (19th in DYAR, per Football Outsiders), but injuries at many of Buffalo’s skill position shave made it difficult to truly evaluate Taylor. “I think Tyrod is an outstanding quarterback,” said Bills head coach Rex Ryan. “I really do. Hopefully we’ll find out soon if we really have a full deck of how good this kid could really be.”
NFL Spending By Team Over Last Four Seasons
The NFLPA has released the official data on team spending over the last four seasons. The Collective Bargaining Agreement stipulates that each team must utilize 89% of the salary cap over two four-year periods, 2013-16 and 2017-20. As previously reported, the Raiders are the only team that has yet to satisfy that requirement for the closing period. The CBA also requires the league, as a whole, to spend 95% of the cap, in cash, for the same period. That requirement has been easily met.
Here is the full rundown of every team’s spending in declining order:
Philadelphia Eagles – $613,928,134
Denver Broncos – $587,712,791
Seattle Seahawks – $584,305,975
Green Bay Packers – $583,138,740
Miami Dolphins – $577,975,260
Kansas City Chiefs – $575,541,332
Buffalo Bills – $573,647,850
Chicago Bears – $568,301,610
Cincinnati Bengals – $567,289,411
Baltimore Ravens – $562,425,698
San Diego Chargers – $562,232,116
Indianapolis Colts – $556,335,689
Atlanta Falcons – $550,614,572
New York Giants – $543,787,033
Arizona Cardinals – $543,327,538
Los Angeles Rams – $541,957,711
New Orleans Saints – $539,836,498
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $539,736,102
Minnesota Vikings – $539,162,454
New York Jets – $533,151,519
Washington Redskins – $532,545,662
Pittsburgh Steelers – $530,698,171
Detroit Lions – $530,210,549
Tennessee Titans – $524,505,256
Dallas Cowboys – $523,033,036
Houston Texans – $517,212,166
Jacksonville Jaguars – $516,908,734
Cleveland Browns – $516,158,864
San Francisco 49ers – $514,488,198
New England Patriots – $500,083,836
Carolina Panthers – $495,149,346
Oakland Raiders – $491,433,408
Bills Shut Down WR Percy Harvin
The Bills are shutting down Percy Harvin for the year. Harvin’s severe migraine headaches proved to be too much to overcome and he is being placed on the NFI list, the team announced. 
Harvin surprised everyone in the football world when he came out of retirement earlier this year to rejoin the Bills. Desperate for a playmaker with Sammy Watkins sidelined, coach Rex Ryan admitted that the move was a bit of a Hail Mary. The Bills’ moderate risk did not pay off. In two games, Harvin caught two passes for six yards.
Harvin, 28, has dealt with chronic migraines throughout his career. Early on with the Vikings, Harvin also missed time with headaches. Later in his career, hip and knee issues became a larger issue for the talented receiver.
It seems likely that Harvin will consider retirement again this offseason. If he walks away from the game again, he probably won’t make a return. To date, Harvin has nearly 5,000 career all-purpose yards. After the 2013 season, he captured a Super Bowl ring with the Seahawks.
Bills QB E.J. Manuel Hires New Agent
On the cusp of free agency, E.J. Manuel has changed agents, as Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal tweets. Manuel will now be repped by CAA with Todd France as his primary agent. 
[RELATED: Bills Paying Logan Thomas Significant Bonus]
France is now the third agent to represent Manuel in his NFL career. He’ll try to drum up a market for Manuel at a strange time in his career. Once the top QB in Buffalo, Manuel has been moved down the depth chart to make way for Tyrod Taylor. The Bills have their own tough decision to make on Taylor, but it’s hard to see a scenario where they move on from him and install Manuel as the starter again.
A return to the Bills as a backup may be a possibility, but it’s probably not what Manuel has in mind. France will now have the challenge of marketing Manuel after a season in which he has thrown just five passes. Before that – from 2013-2015 – Manuel was just 6-10 as a starter. The Florida State product will turn 27 in March and teams will evaluate him on what he can do today versus his future upside.
Birth Of Clay's Child Causes Bills Roster Move
- The Bills have promoted tight end Gerald Christian from the practice squad, reports Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News (via Twitter). Starter Charles Clay missed the team’s flight to Oakland due to the birth of his child, so Christian, the Mr. Irrelevent from the 2015 draft, will provide some depth at tight end. To make room on the roster, the team released kickoff specialist Jordan Gay.