A.J. Epenesa

Bills To Re-Sign DE A.J. Epenesa

Buffalo has lost Leonard Floyd in the early going of the negotiating window, but the team will still have A.J. Epenesa moving forward. The latter has agreed to a two-year deal with Buffalo, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports. Epenesa will see $7MM in 2024 and could earn up to $20MM over the life of the pact, per Garafolo.

The 2020 second-round pick hit free agency after completing his rookie contract. The defensive end has spent his entire four-year career in Buffalo.

Epenesa hasn’t emerged into a starter in Buffalo, but he’s still served as an important member of the defensive line. The pass rusher has finished each of the past two seasons with 6.5 sacks while getting into about 40 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.

The 25-year-old finished this past season ranked 31st among 112th qualifying edge rushers, per Pro Football Focus. The site also gave him one of the highest positional grades for his coverage ability, although he also earned one of the lowest grades for his run defense.

With Floyd now out of the picture, the Bills can temporarily pencil Epenesa in opposite Greg Rousseau on the defensive line. Still, the team will surely look for another body to soak up some of those departed snaps, especially with Shaq Lawson also hitting free agency.

Bills GM: “I Don’t Think You’re Going To See Any Splashes” In Free Agency; Latest On Team’s Top FAs

Bills GM Brandon Beane, echoing the remarks he made in the 2023 offseason, said that his club is unlikely to hand out any especially lucrative contracts in free agency this year. As Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic (subscription required) observes, Buffalo is projected to be roughly $49MM over the 2024 salary cap, which obviously puts a damper on the team’s spending ability.

“I don’t think you’re going to see any splashes,” Beane said. “Even if I found something that was exciting to me, I don’t think it would fit within our cap parameters. I think everyone needs to understand that we’re going to be shopping at some of those same stores we were shopping last year. We’re not going to be on Main Street of New York City or whatever all those high-end shopping centers are. It’s not feasible to where we’re at.”

In Buscaglia’s view, the only surefire way to alleviate the Bills’ cap problems would be to undergo a full roster overhaul as they did in 2017 — the year before quarterback Josh Allen was drafted — and 2018. However, with a star QB like Allen in place, the team is not going to punt on a season just to get right with the salary cap, as Buscaglia opines.

As a result, Buffalo will not be able to swim in the deep end of the free agency pool, and the team may also be forced to part with some of its own top free agents. Indeed, Buscaglia expects most of Buffalo’s high-profile FAs to at least test the open market.

That list includes wide receiver Gabe Davis, who emerged as a key big-play threat for Allen after being selected by the Bills in the fourth round of the 2020 draft. Over his four-year tenure in western New York, Davis posted 27 touchdowns and a 16.7 yards-per-reception rate (though that comes with a modest 54.5% catch percentage, which is typical for a home run hitter). Unfortunately, Davis was forced to sit out the Bills’ two playoff contests at the end of the 2023 campaign due to a PCL injury sustained in the regular season finale against the Dolphins, and even before that happened, 2022 fifth-rounder Khalil Shakir had shown an ability to serve as a capable, cost-controlled complement to Stefon Diggs.

Davis, who will turn 25 in April, confirmed that he plans to test free agency next month (via ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg). He suggested that he would be receptive to a new deal with the Bills, but he said that there were no extension talks between him and the club last season.

Notably, while Davis’ injury was originally classified as a PCL sprain, Ryan O’Halloran of the Buffalo News says that the UCF product actually suffered a torn PCL. There is presently no indication as to whether that ailment will impact Davis’ free agent prospects.

Defensive tackle DaQuan Jones, meanwhile, is one of a number of Bills defensive linemen who are out of contract, and like Davis, he said he has not had any talks with the club about a new deal (as relayed by Buscaglia). Jones signed a two-year, $14MM contract with Buffalo in March 2022, and after playing 16 regular season contests in his first year with the team, he was limited to seven games in 2023 thanks to the pectoral injury he sustained in Week 5. The 32-year-old veteran, who has been a consistently strong and mostly durable starter throughout his career, returned to play the final two games of the regular season and both of Buffalo’s postseason matchups, and he said he is looking forward to his return to the open market.

Jones’ fellow DT Jordan Phillips, on the other hand, is considering retirement, per O’Halloran. Phillips, who stepped into the starting lineup following Jones’ injury, suffered a dislocated wrist in a Week 15 win over the Cowboys and ended the season on IR as a result. Now 31, Phillips enjoyed his finest season as a member of the Bills in 2017, posting 9.5 sacks over 16 games (nine starts). He parlayed that performance into a lucrative three-year contract with the Cardinals the following offseason, but his time in the desert was marred by injury, and he was released in March 2022. He has spent the last two seasons back in Buffalo, but he conceded that “this might be it” for his playing career.

Safety Micah Hyde may also hang up the cleats, as Mark Gaughan of the Buffalo News reports. Hyde, a Packers draftee who began a long and productive stint as a member of the Bills in 2017, played in 14 games in 2023 after being limited to just two contests the year before as a result of a neck injury. In the view of Pro Football Focus, he was not quite as sharp as he had been throughout most of his time in Buffalo, though he was still an above-average defender.

Hyde, 33, said he had no issues with his surgically-repaired neck over the first half of the 2023 season, but he sustained a stinger in Week 9 and another in Week 14, and he conceded that it was a difficult year for him physically. Although he has medical clearance to play, he has not yet decided if he wants to do so.

The Bills also have several key edge rushers on expiring contracts: Leonard Floyd and A.J. Epenesa. Floyd, who signed a one-year contract with the team in June, posted 10.5 sacks in his first Buffalo season, the fourth consecutive year in which he has recorded at least nine sacks. As he prepares for his age-32 campaign, Floyd acknowledged that he will follow the money in free agency, though he still wants to sign with a contender.

Of all of the soon-to-be FAs mentioned above, it could be that Epenesa has the best chance to return to the Bills. The 2020 second-rounder has posted 6.5 sacks in back-to-back seasons, and as ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler writes in a subscribers-only piece, Buffalo — in keeping with its usual desire to retain homegrown talent — may talk extension with Epenesa before free agency opens.

Bills To Trade DE Boogie Basham To Giants

9:53am: This move will indeed lead to Ximines being released. The Giants had re-signed the Old Dominion alum midway through this offseason, but ESPN’s Jordan Raanan notes he will be cut. Ximines played four seasons with the Giants, arriving as a Dave Gettleman-era draft choice. While he recorded 4.5 sacks as a rookie, the former third-rounder only managed two in the ensuing three years.

9:20am: Coworkers for several years in Buffalo, Joe Schoen and Brandon Beane have a trade in place. The Giants are set to acquire edge rusher Boogie Basham from the Bills, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports.

Schoen was in place as the Bills’ assistant GM when they drafted Basham in the 2021 second round. While Basham has not taken off in Buffalo, the Giants will give him an opportunity. The Giants had been among the most active teams in the market for edge help, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

Beane and his former top lieutenant agreed to a pick-swap deal for Basham, with Pelissero adding the Bills and Giants will exchange 2025 late-round picks. Two years remain on Basham’s rookie contract.

The Bills’ Leonard Floyd addition made Basham a logical trade candidate, with the Bills also rostering 2020 second-rounder A.J. Epenesa and 2021 first-rounder Gregory Rousseau. Von Miller remains this position group’s anchor, but the future Hall of Famer is not certain to begin the season on time. The Bills have until 3pm CT today to move Miller from the active/PUP list to the reserve/PUP list, a designation that would shelve him for at least four games. The team could also go week to week with the high-priced D-end, but Shaq Lawson having re-signed this year also complicated Basham’s Bills place.

Epenesa has also drawn trade interest, per Fowler. One year remains on Epenesa’s rookie deal, but with Miller returning from his second ACL tear as a pro, it would make sense if the Bills held onto the Iowa alum for depth purposes. Epenesa finished with a career-high 6.5 sacks last season, breaking through after not producing more than 1.5 in either of his first two NFL slates. Basham, however, has not taken off. The Wake Forest product has 4.5 sacks and eight QB hits in 23 NFL games.

Chosen 61st overall, Basham has yet to make a start as a pro. Rousseau, Epenesa and then Miller have blocked Basham lineup avenues, and the Giants do not present an immediate starter opportunity. Kayvon Thibodeaux and Azeez Ojulari are in place as Big Blue’s starting edge rushers, but Schoen will take a flier on Basham as a depth piece. The Giants still have Jihad Ward and Oshane Ximines behind their starters. The latter, a former third-round pick, is not a lock to make the roster, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan notes (subscription required). With Basham now en route, Ximines may soon be released.

This move comes after the Giants sent the Cardinals a seventh-round pick for Isaiah Simmons. The team had been rumored to be eyeing another low-risk trade, per Duggan, and given Schoen’s Bills past, they are always a logical candidate to do business with the Giants. Beane and Schoen had first-round trade parameters in place this year, but no deal ended up happening.

NFL COVID-19 List Updates: 12/29/21

Several key players returned to practice Wednesday. Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from around the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Activated from practice squad/COVID-19 list: WR Rico Bussey

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

NFL COVID List Updates: 12/20/21

A long list of players were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. We listed the players who landed on the list today, as well as those who were activated off the list:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE John Franklin-Myers, DB Sharrod Neasman

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

AFC East Notes: Bills, Epenesa, Patriots, Jets

In January, defensive end A.J. Epenesa looked the part of a top-15 pick. But, after a shaky combine performance, his draft stock crashed. That worked out just fine for the Bills, who managed to land the Iowa standout in the second round.

It was a mistake,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said (via Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com). “This guy is a better player than the 54th pick in the draft, but time will tell. I think the Bills did a hell of a job and I’m happy he’s there.”

For now, Epenesa will play behind bookends Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison (he may also see some extra snaps on the defensive line if Ed Oliver‘s Saturday arrest keeps him off the field in the fall). In the not-too-distant-future, the Bills see Epenesa as a starter who can make a difference on the edge and even feature as a 3-technique tackle in certain packages. Epenesa is disappointed about being left hanging on the phone last month, but he says he’ll use that as extra motivation on his NFL journey.

I feel like I always try to play with a chip on my shoulder and give myself a little extra motivation. I was number 54; there were 53 people picked in front of me,” Epenesa said. “Yeah, it gets me fired up and I want to be able to go out there and prove to people that they shouldn’t have doubted [me].

Here’s more from the AFC East:

  • Patriots wide receiver Mohamed Sanu is out of his walking boot, according to NFL.com’s Mike Giardi (on Twitter). Sanu joined the Patriots via midseason trade with the Falcons last year, but an ankle injury in his third game with New England hampered him throughout the year. The veteran went under the knife earlier this year and now appears to be on track for a healthy return. Sanu is under contract for one more season at $6.5MM, a reasonable sum considering his ability. In theory, they could cut him, but it would be a surprise since they gave up a second-round pick for him less than a year ago.
  • The Jets have serious interest in free agent cornerback Logan Ryan, but as of late last week, they have not put a formal offer on the table for him, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY hears. Meanwhile, the rival Dolphins may be a surprise suitor for his services. For his part, Ryan says he’d be down to join Gang Green…or any NFL team besides the Titans.

Bills Sign A.J. Epenesa, Jake Fromm

On Friday, the Bills agreed to terms with three of their picks from the 2020 NFL Draft. Second-round edge rusher A.J. Epenesa, fourth-round receiver Gabriel Davis, and fifth-round quarterback Jake Fromm are all under contract, per a club announcement. 

Epenesa was viewed as a first-round prospect, up until a shaky showing at the combine. There, the Iowa product ran a slower-than-expected 5.04-second 40-yard dash and lacked athleticism at 275 pounds. Still, he’s coming off of double-digit sacks in back-to-back seasons and also profiles as a solid defender against the run.

Fromm also saw his stock slip. At one point in time, evaluators said he’d be the No. 1 overall pick. Then, last year happened – the Georgia QB completed just 60.8% of his passes and most scouts now see him as a solid backup type. That’ll be his role in Buffalo, where he’ll sit behind Josh Allen.

With this trio officially in the fold, the Bills’ only remaining straggler is third-round running back Zack Moss. Here’s the full rundown of their draft class, via PFR’s team-by-team tracker:

2-54: AJ Epenesa, DE (Iowa): Signed
3-86: Zack Moss, RB (Utah)
4-128: Gabriel Davis, WR (UCF): Signed
5-167: Jake Fromm, QB (Georgia): Signed
6-188: Tyler Bass, K (Georgia Southern): Signed
6-207: Isaiah Hodgins, WR (Oregon State): Signed
7-239: Dane Jackson, CB (Pittsburgh): Signed

Draft Notes: Lawrence, Saints, LBs

Carolina may end up losing Luke Kuechly, Greg Olsen, Trai Turner, Dontari Poe, James Bradberry, Mario Addison and perhaps Cam Newton this offseason. Rebuild vibes are certainly coming out of Panthers headquarters, and many around the league expect this to be the team that times its rebuild/tanks for Trevor Lawrence, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report notes. The Clemson phenom has been on NFL radars pretty much since he debuted as a true freshman in 2018, and the much-hyped quarterback will be eligible for the 2021 draft. The Panthers are already believed to be high on Lawrence and Ohio State’s Justin Fields — passers who could go Nos. 1-2 next year — and have Matt Rhule signed to a seven-year contract. This would add up to a rebuild commencing, which will make Carolina’s decision at No. 7 this year overall more interesting.

Here is the latest from the draft world, shifting first to the Saints:

  • Since Michael Thomas has emerged as an All-Pro talent, the Saints have been unable to generate much consistency from any of his supporting-cast receivers. A “strong campaign” has emerged within the organization to find a complementary wideout to pair with Thomas, Miller adds. Considering the Saints’ cap situation — barely $9MM in space before the latest Drew Brees re-up — said addition would likely come in the early rounds of this loaded receiver draft. Miller’s latest mock has the Saints taking Clemson deep threat Tee Higgins, but a number of wideouts could be in play for New Orleans at No. 24.
  • A shaky Combine showing has defensive end A.J. Epenesa‘s stock declining, Vic Tafur of The Athletic tweets. Some teams have expressed concern about the Iowa product’s showing, which included a 5.04-second 40-yard dash — at 275 pounds — and limited athleticism during the drills. Epenesa declared for the draft after his junior year with the Hawkeyes, and he recorded double-digit sacks in back-to-back seasons. ESPN’s Todd McShay still has Epenesa as a late-first-round pick, citing his run-defending ability and potential as a power rusher.
  • Linebackers Kenneth Murray and Patrick Queen suffered injuries at the Combine, but both appear on track to recover fairly soon. Both ‘backers sustained the setbacks during their respective second 40 attempts. Queen suffered merely a tweaked hamstring, while Murray also appears to have dodged a serious hamstring injury (Twitter links via Miller and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Queen and Murray are expected to be first- or second-round selections.

Iowa’s A.J. Epenesa Enters Draft

Iowa defensive end A.J. Epenesa is going pro. On Tuesday, the top pass rusher announced that he’ll skip his senior season and enter the 2020 NFL Draft. 

Epenesa is widely projected to be a first-round pick and could very well land in the Top 10. Ohio State’s Chase Young ranks as everyone’s top edge rusher, but after that, Epenesa figures to be the second defensive end taken in April.

Epenesa boasts serious power and block-shedding ability at 6’6″ and 280 pounds. This year, he notched 11.5 sacks and 15 tackles for a loss, cementing his status as one of the best at his position.

The Buccaneers, who pick at No. 14 overall, could represent Epenesa’s floor. Epenesa could help the Bucs replace Shaquil Barrett if he signs a lucrative free agent deal elsewhere. Or, better yet, the Bucs could retain Barrett and slot Epenesa in at the other bookend to bolster their pass rush.

Draft Rumors: Tua, Burrow, Fromm, Iowa

Tua Tagovailoa is not expected to return to Alabama to rebuild his stock, but said stock has taken a hit thanks to the severe hip injury he suffered last weekend. The junior Crimson Tide star can be downgraded to the No. 3 quarterback in next year’s class, per ESPN.com’s Todd McShay, who has LSU’s Joe Burrow and Oregon’s Justin Herbert ranked ahead of Tagovailoa.

If he could’ve finished healthy, I think he would’ve been the first to go, so I do think it affects things, because there’s not a safe one now,” an AFC college scouting director told SI.com’s Albert Breer. “He was the safe one—he’s gonna be smart, accurate; he’s won at a high level, been on the big stage. Now, there’s not a safe one.

Both Sam Bradford and Carson Wentz were top-two overall selections despite significant injuries occurring in their final college seasons, but the nature of Tagovailoa’s setback likely stands to ding his stock a bit more.

Here is the latest surrounding the next crop of draft-eligible prospects:

  • While Tagovailoa and Herbert were viewed as the frontrunners to be the first quarterback taken in 2020, Burrow has now ascended to the favorite to land in that position, Breer hears. The second-year LSU starter is a Heisman Trophy candidate, having throw 38 touchdown passes as a senior. Though the former Ohio State backup was not previously on the first-round radar after an unremarkable junior season, his production has swayed NFL execs this year.
  • McShay rated Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm as a second-tier quarterback prospect, and Breer adds some scouts expect the third-year Bulldogs starter to return for his senior season. Fromm plays in a run-first system, and scouts view him as more of an intangibles-geared prospect than one that will dazzle evaluators with physical ability, per Breer.
  • Herbert, however, does possess those athletic traits, and Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller would be surprised if the Ducks senior falls out of the top five next year. The Dolphins were high on Herbert last year, and NFL GMs were trekking to some of his junior-season games. Tagovailoa’s injury stands to benefit the 6-foot-6 Herbert, Miller adds, as the former was previously on track to be taken ahead of the Pac-12 standout.
  • Good news for Iowa fans. First-round tackle and defensive end prospects Tristan Wirfs and defensive end A.J. Epenesa are as of now expected to return to school for their senior seasons, Tony Pauline of ProFootballNetwork.com notes. Wirfs is viewed as one of the top tackles in the nation, with the 6-6, 280-pound Epenesa having totaled 22.5 sacks in his Hawkeyes tenure.