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Buffalo Bills News & Rumors

Bills Place CB Tre’Davious White On PUP List

August 30th, 2022 at 3:32pm CST by Adam La Rose

One of the most notable roster moves the Bills are making isn’t a significant release or trade, but rather a health-related transaction with major implications. The team is placing cornerback Tre’Davious White on the reserve/PUP list, meaning he will miss at least the first four weeks of the season (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network). 

White is continuing to recover from the torn ACL which ended his 2021 campaign in November. Throughout the offseason, the question of whether or not he would be available in time for Week 1 has hovered over the team, which waited until the last day possible to determine his September fate.

Initially, the two-time Pro Bowler was thought to be making steady progress, to the point where he return was expected. However, recent remarks from head coach Sean McDermott indicated that a PUP list stint to begin the campaign was a distinct possibility.

White has become one of the league’s top corners, earning All-Pro honors in 2019 en route to a four-year, $69MM extension. He was on track for another highly productive campaign before going down with the injury. In his absence, the Bills still made it to the Divisional Round of the playoffs, but he will be missed for however long he remains on the sidelines.

Even if White had been able to suit up by Week 1, corner was routinely identified as an area of need in Buffalo, especially after the free agent departure of Levi Wallace. The team used their first-round pick on Kaiir Elam, who will likely be forced into a more prominent role as a rookie than the team would have envisioned.

Bills To Release O.J. Howard, Duke Johnson

August 30th, 2022 at 8:08am CST by Adam La Rose

The list of notable names being released continues to grow. The Bills are parting ways with veteran tight end O.J. Howard, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). In a separate tweet, he also confirms that running back Duke Johnson is being released. 

Neither moves comes as a complete surprise given recent developments. Howard had put forth underwhelming performances in training camp and the preseason; the fact that he was receiving a large workload with the team’s backups and third-stringers led to speculation last week that he could be on the outside looking in during roster cuts. Given the maximum value of the one-year deal Howard signed in Buffalo ($5MM), a trade always seemed unlikely in this situation.

The former first-rounder spent five seasons with the Buccaneers, putting up consistent numbers during his first three years. His career-high of 34 catches and 565 yards has never been improved upon, however, leading to his departure in free agency and arrival in Buffalo as a backup to Dawson Knox.

The move points to Quintin Morris and Tommy Sweeney taking on larger roles as rotational players behind Knox. Howard, meanwhile, will need to quickly find a new landing spot, where a depth role (and, presumably, a much less lucrative deal) will again be the target. Buffalo will save $2.25MM by releasing him.

The situation is different for Johnson. As Schefter notes, the Bills are eyeing a return for the veteran on their practice squad if he declines to sign elsewhere. The team has been projected to use a three-man committee of Devin Singletary, Zack Moss and second-round rookie James Cook. That trio, not to mention QB Josh Allen, left a rather narrow path to the 53-man squad for Johnson.

The 28-year-old began his career in Cleveland, where he posted 1,000 scrimmage yards for the first (and only) time in 2017. He has since played in Houston and, beginning late last season, Miami. With a 4.6 yards per carry average during the latter stop, he demonstrated value as at least a quality backup – something he is more likely to become elsewhere. As a vested veteran, he is not subject to waivers and can sign anywhere in free agency.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/29/22

August 29th, 2022 at 4:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have until 3pm Tuesday to slash their rosters from 80 to 53 players. Here are the Monday moves teams are making en route to doing so. The list will be updated throughout the day.

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

AFC East Notes: Williams, Bills, Sauce, Jets

August 29th, 2022 at 2:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Mentioned as dangling Preston Williams in trades earlier this month, the Dolphins have not ruled out adding an asset for the young wide receiver. Williams is generating some trade interest, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets, but this looks like a situation that will either produce a deal for a late-round pick or Williams being waived before rosters are finalized Tuesday. Teams have until 3pm CT tomorrow to cut to 53. The Dolphins made some adjustments at receiver this offseason, trading for Tyreek Hill and adding Cedrick Wilson Jr. The team already cut Mohamed Sanu on Monday, however, potentially keeping the door open for Williams to stick as a backup. Williams emerged as a key target for the skeleton-crew 2019 Dolphins edition, but his rookie-year ACL tear threw his career off course. He has just 359 receiving yards over the past two seasons.

Here is the latest from the AFC East:

  • In the wake of the Bills jettisoning embattled punter Matt Araiza, they have gotten to work on finding his replacement. Michael Palardy, Ty Long, Tyler Newsome and Joseph Charlton worked out for the team, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. None have been signed. Two of these punters, as it often goes with the Bills, have Panthers histories. Though, Palardy — a Carolina punter from 2016-19 — is the only one with ties to Buffalo’s Brandon Beane–Sean McDermott duo. Charlton was Carolina’s punter in 2020, long after the Bills had hired Beane and McDermott. These workouts also came before two veteran punters — Brett Kern and Sam Martin — were informed of their respective releases by the Titans and Broncos. The Colts signed the punter the Bills recently waived (Matt Haack) last week.
  • Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins created some cap space for his team recently, restructuring his contract. Dawkins’ reworking created more than $5.6MM in space for the Bills, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. The Bills moved Dawkins’ 2022 base salary down to $1MM and added two void years to spread out his cap hits, per OverTheCap. Dawkins remains signed through 2024; the Bills hold just more than $11MM in cap space.
  • The Jets will not spend any regular-season time developing Sauce Gardner as a backup. The No. 4 overall pick will be a Week 1 starter, Robert Saleh said. Gardner’s expected ascent will move Bryce Hall to a backup role, with the Jets also having signed D.J. Reed in free agency.
  • Isaiah Wynn looks to remain available in trades for a Patriots team that has moved him to right tackle. Additionally, when Trent Brown re-signed with New England, he was not made aware the organization was planning to move him back to the left side.

Bills To Waive P Matt Araiza

August 27th, 2022 at 6:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

Bills rookie punter Matt Araiza has been told by the team that he is being released, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). The move will be effective immediately.

The news comes in the wake of a recent lawsuit alleging that the San Diego State alum was involved in the gang rape of a minor last season. Araiza was one of three players named in the suit, the only one currently in the NFL. Since the alleged incident took place while he was in college, any discipline he faced would need to have come from the Bills, rather than the NFL itself.

Araiza’s attorney called the lawsuit a “shakedown” as a result of his status as the team’s top punter. The sixth-rounder had won the job when Buffalo cut veteran Matt Haack. Expectations had been high for Araiza, who earned the nickname ‘Punt God’ for his powerful leg showcased during his college career.

Signs were pointing to his release, however. Araiza did not dress during the Bills’ preseason finale, and the team used third-string QB Matt Barkley to handle punting duties. Not long after, Araiza issued a statement indicating that “the facts of the incident are not what they are portrayed in the lawsuit or in the press.”

Nevertheless, the team began putting together a list of available punters earlier today, as noted by Tim Graham of The Athletic (on Twitter). With Haack having already signed in Indianapolis, the Bills will now be without a punter on the roster.

General manager Brandon Beane said that the team – which issued a statement immediately following the lawsuit saying that they were recently made aware of the incident and had conducted a “thorough investigation” – had difficulty obtaining details on the matter. He added that “there are many things that we could not get our hands on” and that “this was about letting Matt go handle his situation” (Twitter link via Schefter).

“We tried to be thorough and thoughtful and not rush to judgment, and I would say it’s not easy. You’re trying to put facts around a legal situation sometimes with limited information… We reached out to double-digit teams and no one had anything on teams. Yes, if we had this… Anything that would’ve been lingering, he would’ve been off our [draft] board” (Twitter links via the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala).

Buffalo will now be active on the free agent market to look for a replacement punter, either amongst current available options or players released during Tuesday’s final round of roster cuts.

Bills P Matt Araiza Accused Of Gang Rape In Civil Lawsuit

August 26th, 2022 at 7:30pm CST by Ben Levine

AUGUST 26: Araiza will not punt for the Bills during tonight’s preseason finale, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Tim Graham of The Athletic adds that he will not dress at all (Twitter link).

Araiza has issued the following statement: “The facts of the incident are not what they are portrayed in the lawsuit or in the press. I look forward to quickly setting the record straight” (Twitter link via Schefter).

AUGUST 25: A civil lawsuit filed today accuses Buffalo Bills punter Matt Araiza and two other men associated with the San Diego State University football team of gang raping a 17-year-old girl last year, according to a report from Colleen Shalby and Robert J. Lopez of the Los Angeles Times.

The lawsuit was filed in San Diego County Superior Court. Araiza, who completed his four-year stint with SDSU in 2021, was one of three men named in the complaint. The other men were Zavier Leonard, who is listed on SDSU’s roster as a redshirt freshman, and Nowlin “Pa’a” Ewaliko, who is not currently on the roster. The incident took place at a party in October of 2021, and police were notified the next day.

Kerry Armstrong, who is representing Araiza, called the rape allegations false, saying his investigator spoke to witnesses from the party who contradicted the allegations. No arrests have been made, but detectives recently submitted findings to determine whether they should proceed with charges.

“It’s a shakedown because he’s now with the Buffalo Bills. There is no doubt in my mind,” Armstrong told the Los Angeles Times.

Araiza broke an NCAA record in 2021 after averaging 51.19 yards per punt. Following his junior campaign, the punter declared for the NFL Draft, and he was selected by the Bills in the sixth round.

“We were recently made aware of a civil complaint involving Matt from October 2021,” the Bills said in a statement. “Due to the serious nature of the complaint, we conducted a thorough examination of this matter. As this is an ongoing civil case legal, we will have no other comment at this point.”

The Bills recently committed to the rookie as their starting punter when they released veteran Matt Haack, who has since caught on with the Colts. According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, the NFL doesn’t have the ability to punish Araiza since the alleged incident took place before he was in the league.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/25/22

August 25th, 2022 at 4:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves around the NFL:

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

  • Released from IR via injury settlement: CB Duke Dawson

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Waived (injured): WR Cyril Grayson
  • Released from IR via injury settlement: T Jonathan Hubbard

Washington Commanders

AFC East Notes: Bills, White, Moss, Patriots, Jets

August 23rd, 2022 at 6:22pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bills are hoping Tre’Davious White can avoid a stint on the PUP list to begin the regular season. While speaking to reporters, GM Brandon Beane said the team is going to “run out the clock” when it comes to White’s roster spot in the hope that he’ll progress over the next week.

“We don’t have the final answer,” Beane said (via Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic on Twitter). “I can’t sit here and say, ‘He’s going to be here on this day.'”

The cornerback tore his ACL last November, and while reports have indicated that he’s progressing well in his return to the field, it’s still uncertain if he’ll be ready to go for Week 1. White landed on the PUP to start training camp, but the team will have to make an important decision on him as they reduce their roster to 53 players. If White is placed on PUP to begin the regular season, he’ll miss Buffalo’s first four games.

The former first-round pick has spent his entire career with the Bills, earning All-Pro nods in both 2019 and 2020. In 11 games last season, White collected 41 tackles, six passes defended, and one interception.

More notes out of the AFC East…

  • To enter Bills camp, there was an expectation that free agent acquisition Jamison Crowder would battle with holdover Isaiah McKenzie for the starting slot receiver role. As Buscaglia writes, the team has given every indication that McKenzie has won that position battle, and Crowder’s training camp struggles may have put him on the roster bubble. Despite his assessment, Buscaglia later opined that the veteran’s experience will ultimately earn him a spot on the 53-man roster.
  • Elsewhere on offense, it sounds like the Bills are ready to roll with a RB committee. Buscaglia writes that both Devin Singletary and rookie James Cook could end up seeing extensive work outside of the red zone, while Zack Moss is expected to serve as the team’s goal-line running back. Moss has gotten an extensive look during the preseason, and while the writer hints that the coaching staff could be showcasing him for a trade, he also acknowledged that the team has been happy with the RB’s performance during training camp and preseason.
  • Before rookie wideout Tyquan Thornton went down with a shoulder injury, the Patriots were fielding offers on their receivers, according to Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus. However, it now “seems unlikely” that the Patriots would subtract from the grouping of Jakobi Meyers, Kendrick Bourne, DeVante Parker, and Nelson Agholor. Meanwhile, the trio of Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Kristian Wilkerson, and Tre Nixon are competing for limited roster spots, while Ty Montgomery‘s best chance of making the roster may be as a running back.
  • While cornerback Sauce Gardner and wideout Garrett Wilson are expected to play important roles for the Jets next season, their other first-round pick may see more of a complementary role. Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post writes that Carl Lawson, Quinnen Williams, Sheldon Rankins, and John Franklin-Myers are expected to start along the defensive line, meaning Jermaine Johnson will have to compete with Jacob Martin for the role of “situational rusher.” “However I can help the team win is honestly how I look at it,” Johnson said. “I practice like I’m a [undrafted] free agent anyway, so I don’t really care. It’s like I’m fighting for my life. That’s how I am, what I believe and how I practice — and it just lines up perfectly with what Coach Saleh is all about: Practicing hard, balls to the wall, giving 110 percent not only for yourself but for the team.”

Bills To Move OL Ike Boettger To Reserve/PUP List

August 23rd, 2022 at 10:25am CST by Sam Robinson

As a way to clear roster spots in moving down to the required 80-man limit, teams can begin placing players on the reserve/PUP list Tuesday. The Bills will use this method in trimming their roster to that number.

Offensive lineman Ike Boettger will be moved from the active/PUP list — a preseason-only designation — to the reserve/PUP list, GM Brandon Beane said Tuesday morning (via NFL.com’s Mike Giardi, on Twitter). Boettger will miss at least the first four games of the regular season.

[RELATED: Bills Trade G Cody Ford To Cardinals]

With Boettger suffering an Achilles tear in Week 16, such a move has been on the radar for a while. The Bills added some pieces up front this offseason as well. They signed Rodger Saffold, Greg Van Roten, Greg Mancz and David Quessenberry. They also matched a Bears RFA offer sheet for Ryan Bates, retaining the 2021 starter.

Buffalo also re-signed Boettger to a one-year deal worth $1.19MM ($1MM guaranteed), keeping the former UDFA in the fold. The ex-Iowa blocker started 10 games for the Bills last season, working as a guard. After grading Boettger as a top-40 guard in 2020 — a seven-start year — Pro Football Focus slotted him outside the top 50 among guards last season.

Saffold and Bates are expected to be the team’s guard starters this season. Boettger, 27, should be expected to return at some point during the year. Beane did add that the veteran blocker encountered a setback in his rehab, per The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia (on Twitter). This helps explain the PUP transfer and figures to delay his return.

Bills Cut WR Tavon Austin

August 22nd, 2022 at 5:46pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bills released a pair of veterans today. The team announced that they’ve cut wideout Tavon Austin and punter Matt Haack.

Austin had his most productive season in years in 2021. In 13 games (three starts) with the Jaguars, the veteran hauled in 24 receptions for 213 yards and one touchdown. He ended up joining Buffalo in June, and there was hope that he’d be able to slide into a back-of-the-depth-chart role behind Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis, and Isaiah McKenzie. That didn’t end up being the case, and with the veteran out of the picture, this will probably secure an opening day roster spot for at least one of Jake Kumerow or Jamison Crowder.

There’s a chance Austin could catch on elsewhere. While he’s bounced around the NFL a bit recently, he’s still seen time in nine NFL seasons, hauling in 244 receptions and 16 touchdowns. The veteran also has extensive special teams history, although it’s been a while since he’s been a full-time punt returner.

Haack’s spot on the roster always seemed to be in risk following the emergence of ‘Punt God’ Matt Araiza. Haack was the Bills’ punter in 2021, averaging a career-low 42.9 yards on his 52 punts. He spent the first four seasons of his career with the Dolphins, where he had an average punt distance of 44.7 yards.

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