Bills' Top Players to Avoid in 2024 NFL Free Agency

The Buffalo Bills do not have a lot of salary cap space to work with in the 2024 NFL offseason.

That means the Bills must be smart with every decision they make in free agency.

At the moment, Buffalo is $51 million over the cap, per Spotrac, and is set to lose Gabriel Davis, Micah Hyde and a handful of defensive players to free agency.

Buffalo can re-work its cap situation to bring back a few of those players, but some replacements will be needed.

The Bills must be smart with who they bring in, and if the options are not ideal in certain spots, they could wait until the 2024 NFL draft to make certain roster upgrades.

Jauan Jennings

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 11: Jauan Jennings #15 of the San Francisco 49ers catches a pass in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

The Bills will not be overpaying for one of the stars of Super Bowl 58.

Jauan Jennings should command a solid market after his four-catch, 42-yard, one-touchdown receiving performance on Sunday.

Jennings possesses the profile of a wide receiver the Bills could go after in free agency, but after the Super Bowl showing, he will be too costly.

Some struggling team with a wide receiver need will sign Jennings to a bigger deal than expected. The Bills should not be anywhere close to that market.

Buffalo can find its Davis replacement either somewhere else in free agency, through the draft or internally with Khalil Shakir.

C.J. Gardner-Johnson

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DETROIT, MI - JANUARY 21: C.J. Gardner-Johnson #2 of the Detroit Lions celebrates after a play during the second quarter of an NFL divisional round playoff football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field on January 21, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

C.J. Gardner-Johnson is an intriguing free agent for any contender because of how he performs when he is on the field.

The problem with the veteran safety is that he has not played a complete season since 2019.

Gardner-Johnson missed a chunk of his first season with the Detroit Lions due to injury and only played 12 games with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022.

The ball-hawking safety would be a fascinating piece inside the Bills defense, but the AFC East needs players it can rely on for 17 games.

Gardner-Johnson can't guarantee that with his injury history and that should lead the Bills in another direction.

Chase Young

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LAS VEGAS, NV - FEBRUARY 11: Chase Young #92 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after making a tackle during Super Bowl LVIII against the Kansas City Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, NV. (Photo by Perry Knotts/Getty Images)

The Bills must reconfigure their pass rush with A.J. Epenesa, Jordan Phillips and Shaq Lawson scheduled to hit free agency.

The NFL draft seems like the best spot to find any potential pass-rushing replacements at an affordable cost.

Chase Young could intrigue the Buffalo front office because his pass-rushing skills, but he could command too much money to fit in the Bills' plans.

After all, this is former top-five NFL draft pick who will be negotiating his first major NFL contract.

Young should command a decent price tag after his 7.5-sack season between Washington and San Francisco and that could take the Bills out of his market.