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Harrison Phillips

This Date In Transactions History: Bills Trade Sammy Watkins, Ronald Darby

August 11th, 2022 at 11:53am CST by Sam Robinson

A few transactions keyed the Bills’ rise from perennial regular-season-only team to one that has been on the Super Bowl contender tier in the 2020s, but August 11, 2017 represents a fairly important date on the franchise’s timeline.

On this day five years ago, the Bills swung two trades. Those deals, one in particular, helped the franchise transform its position in the NFL hierarchy. Shortly before noon CT that day, the Rams acquired Sammy Watkins and a 2018 sixth-round pick in exchange for a 2018 second-round pick and cornerback E.J. Gaines. Minutes later, word emerged that the Eagles had obtained Ronald Darby for a third-round pick and wide receiver Jordan Matthews.

Both Watkins and Darby were Bills starters brought in during Doug Whaley‘s run as general manager, the former as a 2014 first-round pick and the latter via the 2015 second round. The Bills traded up to No. 4 for Watkins in 2014, but the injury concerns that have largely defined the talented pass catcher’s career showed up early. The team got out early on Darby, who had two years remaining on his rookie contract at the time of the trade.

Both have since bounced around the league, though each has made key contributions post-Buffalo. Watkins elevated his value on Sean McVay‘s first Rams team, playing a career-high 15 games in 2017. This led to his signing a then-startling $16MM-per-year Chiefs deal in 2018 and helping Kansas City to back-to-back Super Bowls. Darby started for the Eagles’ Super Bowl LII-winning team in his first Philadelphia season. He has since signed deals with Washington and Denver. The Bills, however, used the trades to position themselves for a quick ascent under Sean McDermott and GM Brandon Beane.

Armed with the two additional Day 2 picks, Beane maneuvered to land the team’s next franchise centerpiece in his first draft as GM. In a rare two-pronged move up the first-round board, the Bills began their April 2018 odyssey by acquiring the No. 12 overall pick. To do so, they packaged veteran left tackle Cordy Glenn in a pre-draft deal with the Bengals. That move featured Glenn, Buffalo’s No. 21 pick and a 2018 fifth-round choice going to Cincinnati for No. 12 and a 2018 sixth. On draft night, Beane flipped the No. 12 selection to the Buccaneers for No. 7. To move into the top 10, the Bills included the pick they obtained for Watkins (No. 56). They traded Nos. 12, 53 and 56 to Tampa Bay for the slot that became Josh Allen, the third quarterback selected in 2018’s five-QB first round.

With the pick from the Darby deal, the Bills chose defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, who became a four-year contributor and part-time starter. Phillips left in free agency this year to sign with the Vikings. Although Matthews and Gaines did not contribute much in Buffalo, the Allen acquisition obviously changed the franchise’s course.

Despite hurting their 2017 roster by dealing away Darby and Watkins, the Bills made a surprise playoff bid that season. While 2018 featured a considerable step back, the team has qualified for the past three AFC brackets. Allen has since become one of the NFL’s top players, leading the team to the 2020 AFC championship game and into the 2021 divisional round. He is locked in through 2028 via a six-year, $258MM extension. This year’s Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson and Kyler Murray deals have bumped Allen’s contract down to fifth among quarterbacks.

Vikings, DT Harrison Phillips Agree To Deal

March 14th, 2022 at 7:38pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bills have signed Tim Settle and DaQuan Jones, and one of their previous defensive tackle contributors is heading elsewhere. The Vikings are signing Harrison Phillips, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.

Buffalo wanted to bring Phillips back, but the four-year veteran moved out of the AFC East champions’ price range, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The former third-round pick will score a nice payday in Minnesota, signing for three years and $19.5MM.

Phillips worked as a starter and rotational player in Buffalo; he will collect a big raise to likely play a more prominent role in Minnesota. Phillips will join Dalvin Tomlinson in Minnesota, which has Sheldon Richardson on track for free agency and Michael Pierce uncertain to return.

After getting off to a strong start in 2019, Harrison saw that momentum blunted by an ACL tear. He made modest contributions in 2020 but enjoyed a better season last year, making a career-high 51 tackles (four for loss) and posting six quarterback hits. The Bills used Phillips as a starter in eight games last season.

Phillips, 26, joins a Vikings team that plans to address Pierce’s contract, Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets. The veteran defensive tackle is tied to a $10.2MM 2022 cap number. Since Pierce’s contract tolled after he opted out in 2020, his deal runs through 2023.

AFC East Rumors: Patriots, Jets, Phillips

August 23rd, 2021 at 11:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Patriots‘ quarterback battle will tilt toward Mac Jones this week, by default. Cam Newton will not be permitted to practice with the team until Thursday. A COVID-19 issue will force the veteran quarterback to work virtually, according to the Patriots, who have called this a misunderstanding that stemmed from Newton traveling to a team-approved medical appointment outside Foxborough. Newton has not tested positive for the coronavirus, per the team, but an issue with his testing cadence caused this hiccup. Like Kirk Cousins and Lamar Jackson this month, Newton’s unvaccinated status has complicated matters for his team. Only unvaccinated players are tested daily; vaccinated players also are exempt from five-day isolation periods. One of the practices Newton will miss will be a joint workout with the Giants.

Until Monday, Jones had lined up with the Pats’ second-team offense, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com notes. This week certainly represents an opportunity for the first-round pick to gain ground. Both Newton and Jones played well in New England’s second preseason game, and OC Josh McDaniels said the 32-year-old incumbent remains the starter. The Pats have not named a Week 1 starter, however. Here is the latest from the AFC East:

  • Rather than give Jamal Adams a top-market contract, the Jets moved on via a blockbuster trade. It turns out, they were involved in a similar negotiation barely a year ago. Adams wanted to be the Jets’ highest-paid player and sought the $17.5MM-per-year figure — which would have surpassed C.J. Mosley‘s $17MM AAV — that he ended up getting from the Seahawks, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes. With the Broncos having yet to move Justin Simmons past the $15MM-AAV barrier, Adams’ ask was even farther beyond the safety salary range in 2020. Adams landing his Seattle extension last week, however, stands to benefit Marcus Maye in 2022. The Jets and Maye were not close on terms at July’s franchise tag deadline, pushing Adams’ former sidekick toward free agency next year.
  • Morgan Moses has not locked up the Jets’ right tackle job just yet, with Cimini adding that incumbent George Fant has pushed the longtime Washington starter. Fant has split first-team reps with Moses, with the team listing each as a starter on its depth chart. Fant started 14 Jets games at right tackle last year; Moses started every Washington game for the past six years at the position. Despite Moses’ superior resume, Fant is attached to a $9.1MM-per-year deal while Moses signed a one-year, $3.6MM pact after his Washington release. This is an interesting issue for the Jets to have, given their struggles up front over the past few years.
  • Bills defensive tackle Harrison Phillips seems to have both avoided a serious injury and run into a potentially problematic issue. The fourth-year D-lineman left Buffalo’s second preseason game with an injury NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport classified as not serious (Twitter link). Sean McDermott, however, said the injury is to the same knee that required ACL surgery in 2019. It does not look like Phillips is in danger of missing too much time, per McDermott, but this will be an issue for the Bills to monitor ahead of the rotational lineman’s contract year.
  • The Patriots attempted to interview Packers executive Chad Brinker this offseason, but Albert Breer of SI.com notes Green Bay blocked the move. The Pats wanted to meet with Brinker about a job helping manage their salary cap. Brinker would have rejoined ex-Packers exec Eliot Wolf in New England. Instead, the Packers promoted him.

AFC Injury Notes: Landry, Phillips, Beckham

February 23rd, 2020 at 4:10pm CST by Marc Delucchi

Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry was unable to avoid offseason hip surgery, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Landry had been hopeful that rest and rehab would be enough to deal with his injury during the offseason but instead opted to go under the knife. The news did not come as a huge surprise given the fact that Landry had previously mentioned he regretted not getting surgery sooner, but it remains noteworthy nonetheless.

The timetable for his return appears to be six-to-eight months, which would allow him back onto the field at some point during training camp.

Here’s some more injury notes from around the AFC:

  • Bills defensive tackle Harrison Phillips discussed the grueling recovery process from a torn ACL with Bills Insider Chris Brown. Phillips described his experience going through the “very long, slow process” working back to the field. On top of his original rehab, Phillips suffered a major setback in September, which delayed his recovery timetable even further. At this point, Phillips does not expect to be a full go until training camp.
  • Unlike teammate Jarvis Landry, Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. should be back at full strength from surgery in less than a month, per Cabot. Beckham, who underwent core-muscle surgery in late January, is on pace to be recovered in time to participate in offseason minicamp. While he did not attend minicamp last offseason, the combination of a new head coach in Cleveland and his attempts to come back from an injury could make his attendance more likely.

Bills’ Harrison Phillips Done For Year

September 23rd, 2019 at 3:38pm CST by Zachary Links

Bills defensive tackle Harrison Phillips is done for the year with a torn ACL, as ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano tweets. The Bills will place Phillips on IR, opening up another spot on the roster.

Phillips played 26 of 61 snaps against the Bengals on Sunday, but did not record an official statistic. In Week 2, he was credited with half a sack.

The Bills figure to see even more snaps out of Star Lotulelei and Jordan Phillips without H. Phillips around, and one of Kyle Peko or Vincent Taylor figure to be promoted from the taxi squad.

Bills Sign Rookie DT Harrison Phillips

May 30th, 2018 at 3:25pm CST by Zachary Links

On Wednesday, the Bills announced the signing of third-round defensive tackle Harrison Phillips. With Phillips in the fold, the Bills have just one draft pick left to sign. 

Phillips should see time right off the bat as a top substitute for Star Lotulelei at nose tackle. The Bills believe that he’ll be able to hit the ground running, thanks in part to his work ethic.

“I expect to work my tail off and do everything they ask me to do as best I can,” he said. “I’m just going to work through everything. I know that that whole defensive front has a whole wealth of knowledge and if I could just try and pick all their brains, I hope I can just come in and contribute.”

As shown in PFR’s draft signing tracker, first-round quarterback Josh Allen stands as the Bills’ only unsigned pick: