Bills' Last-Minute Guide to 2023 NFL Free Agency
The Buffalo Bills face two critical decisions at the start of NFL free agency.
The AFC East side needs to decide if it wants to re-sign Jordan Poyer and/or Tremaine Edmunds.
The safety and linebacker are two of the biggest defensive players on the free-agent market, and they could command massive contracts elsewhere.
Buffalo needs to get salary cap compliant before the front office makes any approvals on free-agent deals. The Bills are $17.8 million over the cap as of Sunday morning, per Spotrac.
Poyer and Edmunds both may not be back in 2023, and the same could be said about Devin Singletary.
The Bills may favor going into the new season with James Cook as their primary running back, and that could leave them looking for a backup at running back instead of paying Singletary to stick around to split carries.
The unit blocking for Cook and others needs some reshaping as well with Rodger Saffold set to hit the open market after he started 16 games at guard in 2022.
Jordan Poyer, Tremaine Edmunds Could Both Depart
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The Bills and their fans have been preparing for the potential loss of both top defensive free agents in the offseason.
Poyer could be after one final massive deal in his NFL career, and the Bills can't compete with other teams that have much more salary cap space available.
The competition for Edmunds should be steeper since he is seven years younger than Poyer.
The potential departures of both players are a product of the Bills chasing a championship by acquiring big names, like Stefon Diggs and Von Miller.
Buffalo has nine players scheduled to have a salary cap hit over $10 million in 2023, including players at Poyer and Edmunds' positions. Matt Milano and Micah Hyde are two of five defensive players in that upper echelon of team deals.
It will be difficult for the Bills to pay even one of their top free agents because of all the current contracts on the books.
The Bills could go after less expensive free agents at each position to fill in the holes, or they could use the No. 28 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft to add a replacement at safety or linebacker.
Does Devin Singletary Come Back?
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Singletary's situation is an interesting one to break down, to say the least.
He was a reliable ball carrier in his first four NFL seasons, but the Bills may be willing to let him go because they drafted Cook last year.
Singletary has four seasons of at least 150 carries on his legs now, and that could hurt his value inside the Bills front office.
The Bills may not be willing to commit a ton of money to a No. 2 option at the position because of Cook's potential and the ability to either draft another running back, or add a cheaper veteran option in free agency.
The case in Singletary's favor is that he has been productive in his four seasons with the Bills, and the team needs as many offensive weapons as possible to compete in the AFC.
You could argue the Bills should bring back a known quantity at running back, even though he has not had a 1,000-yard season, instead of taking the risk with someone else.
Bills Could Get Younger on Offensive Line
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The Bills could go from the 34-year-old Saffold to a younger free agent signing at guard.
Buffalo signed Saffold to a one-year deal last offseason, and it turned out to be a solid signing, but now the franchise should look to get younger to help protect Josh Allen.
There are a handful of free-agent guards under the age of 30 that could shore up the interior without costing a fortune.
Isaac Seumalo, Ben Powers, Will Hernandez and Andrew Wylie are among the potential targets to replace Saffold.
Wylie would be an interesting signing because he is a versatile offensive lineman and it cut into the interior depth of the Kansas City Chiefs.
A relatively inexpensive deal for an offensive guard would be ideal from the Bills' perspective because they will likely have some work to do on defense if Poyer and Edmunds depart.
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