Reid Ferguson

Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC East

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BillsDolphinsJets and Patriots moves are noted below.

Buffalo Bills

Signed:

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Placed on IR:

Miami Dolphins

Signed:

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

New England Patriots

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

New York Jets

Signed: 

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Placed on IR:

Bills Reduce Roster To 53 Players

The Bills have been busy today, releasing a pair of offensive linemen, trading defensive end Boogie Basham to the Giants, and shifting Von Miller to the reserve/PUP list. The team eventually finalized their roster, cutting down their squad to 53 players:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Dean Marlowe was traded to the Bills last November, and the safety began his second stint with the organization after spending three-plus seasons with the organization between 2017 and 2020. The veteran ended up starting a pair of playoff games for Buffalo, collecting seven tackles and an interception. The 31-year-old re-signed with the Bills back in May.

A.J. Klein was another former Bills player added midway through the 2022 season. It was a whirlwind season for the veteran LB. Klein was released by Buffalo in March, and he ended up spending time with the Giants, Ravens, and Bears before returning to the Bills in November. He collected 11 tackles in six games before putting up zeros in a pair of playoff games.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC East

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BillsDolphinsJets and Patriots moves are noted below.

Here are Wednesday’s AFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.

Buffalo Bills

Signed:

Placed on IR: 

Signed to practice squad:

Miami Dolphins

Claimed:

Waived: 

Signed to practice squad:

New England Patriots

Claimed:

Waived: 

Signed to practice squad:

New York Jets

Claimed:

Re-signed:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Bills Trim Roster To 53

The Bills cut 23 players from their roster today, making it to the 53-man limit. The team announced the following moves:

Released

Waived

As Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic points out, cutting Lewis came as a bit of a surprise considering the Bills’ lack of depth at cornerback. However, the reporter believes that today’s move is an indication that the team isn’t concerned about injuries to Levi Wallace, Dane Jackson and Taron Johnson. Lewis, a 2019 undrafted free agent, finished last season with seven tackles in five games (two starts). If he passes through waivers, he’ll likely end up on Buffalo’s practice squad.

AFC East Notes: Davis, McCourty, Pats, Bills

Corey Davis will be expected to play a critical role for the Jets this season, but he will need some time off first. The fifth-year wide receiver suffered a shoulder injury during Jets OTAs, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Davis landed on his shoulder after attempting to make a leaping catch. This is believed to be a minor shoulder strain, though Garafolo adds that Dr. James Andrews examined the former top-five pick. Davis, who signed this year’s second-most lucrative wideout contract (three years, $37.5MM), is not expected to require surgery.

Here is the latest from the AFC East:

  • The Dolphins added Jason McCourty early this month. The veteran cornerback is expected to play a key depth role in Miami, and Brian Flores said (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald) some work at safety is possible for the three-year Patriots corner starter. McCourty saw most of his snaps at corner in 2020 but did work as a safety on 75 plays. The Dolphins let Bobby McCain go this offseason but have ex-Pats corner Eric Rowe and second-rounder Jevon Holland at safety. As for McCourty’s compensation, Jackson adds the 33-year-old defender signed for the veteran minimum. His base salary is nearly fully guaranteed, with OverTheCap noting McCourty is locked into $987K of that $1.1MM figure.
  • Joe Thuney‘s departure for Kansas City will create a vacancy at New England’s left guard spot for the first time in many years. The Patriots‘ first-string left guard since 2016, Thuney has yet to miss a game during his career. The Pats, however, may have located a gem in 2020 sixth-round pick Michael Onwenu. The Michigan product started 16 games and played more on the edge than at guard as a rookie. But it looks like the Pats will shift Onwenu to a full-time guard role, with ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss noting he lined up as their first-string left guard in OTAs. The Pats traded for Trent Brown and are expected to use him at right tackle, Onwenu’s primary 2020 position. Pro Football Focus graded Onwenu as a top-10 tackle last season.
  • Brown and Isaiah Wynn are set to be the Pats’ starting tackles, and Reiss adds Justin Herron looks like the top candidate to be their swing backup. Drafted 13 spots ahead of Onwenu in last year’s sixth round, Herron started six games and played 351 snaps as a rookie. PFF graded Herron 56th overall at tackle in 2020. Considering Wynn’s injury history, the Pats’ swing-tackle role is a pivotal gig.
  • Long snappers have a rigid salary structure. Entering last week, a seven-way tie existed for the league’s highest paid deep snapper. But the Bills appear to have broken said tie. Buffalo made Reid Ferguson the highest-paid snap specialist, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. Though it is not known how much more than the previous snapper-high figure ($1.2MM) the Bills are giving Ferguson, Pelissero adds that the fifth-year snapper will receive a $675K signing bonus.

Bills Extend Reid Ferguson 

The Bills signed long snapper Reid Ferguson to a brand new three-year deal, per a club announcement. Ferguson has served as the team’s LS for his entire four-year career. Now, he’s slated to continue in that role through 2024.

Ferguson came into the league in 2016 as an undrafted free agent out of LSU. He didn’t make the final cut that year, but the Bills stashed him on the taxi squad. In 2017, he got the LS job, and he’s held it with perfect attendance ever since — four seasons, 64 games.

Today, the 27-year-old stands as the second-longest tenured player on the Bills’ roster, behind only Jerry Hughes, who has been with the club since 2013.

Bills Sign LS Reid Ferguson To Extension

The Bills have re-signed long snapper Reid Ferguson to a three-year extension, according to a team announcement. Ferguson was set to be an exclusive rights free agent this offseason, meaning that he would not have reached the open market, unless the Bills renounced his rights. 

It’s early in the offseason, but the Bills have already started taking care of in-house matters. Earlier this month, the Bills signed Lorenzo Alexander to a new one-year deal and inked offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles to a fresh one-year pact.

The Bills’ list of free agents is rapidly dwindling, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes. Here’s the full rundown of the Bills’ FAs-to-be, as of this writing:

Unrestricted Free Agents

Restricted Free Agents

Exclusive Rights Free Agents

Bills Cut CB Marcus Roberson

The Bills announced that they are releasing Marcus Roberson from the active roster, Joe Buscaglia of WKBW tweets. In other moves, kicker Marshall Morgan released from the practice squad while adding long snapper Reid Ferguson. Marcus Roberson (vertical)

Roberson was just promoted from the Bills’ p-squad over the weekend in advance of Sunday’s game against the Patriots. The 24-year-old did not record an official statistic in the 41-25 defeat. If he clears waivers, it’s possible that he could circle back to Buffalo’s taxi squad. With Roberson gone, the Bills will continue ahead with corners Stephon Gilmore, Ronald Darby, Nickell Robey, Kevon Seymour, and Corey White.

In other Bills news, the team placed safety Aaron Williams on injured reserve this week. The team also welcomed back wide receiver Percy Harvin.

Workout Notes: Pats, Chiefs, Broncos, Jets

Now that cutdowns are completed, teams have begun auditioning players that are still on the free agent market, either in an effort to upgrade their current roster or to update their emergency free agent lists. Let’s take a look at the workouts that have been reported today:

Bills Cut 9, Down To 75

The Bills released nine players on their way to the 75-man limit. Here’s the full rundown.

Released:

Reserve/PUP:

Waived/Injured:

Reserve/NFI:

  • WR Kolby Listenbee

Reserve/Injured:

  • LB Reggie Ragland