Ranking the Buffalo Bills' Best Moves so Far This Offseason

Although a lot of the attention this offseason has been deflected to Peyton Manning starting a new era with the Denver Broncos, or Tim Tebow joining Mark Sanchez in New York with the Jets, the Buffalo Bills were not afraid to spend this offseason.

Here is a ranking of the moves the Buffalo Bills organization has made so far in preparation for what should be an extremely exciting 2012 season, filled with some important new faces.

8B: Re-Signed WR Ruvell Martin

Admittedly, the Buffalo Bills did not get much production from wide receivers not named Stevie Johnson or David Nelson last season.

In 2011, Ruvell Martin had just seven catches for 82 yards in 14 games played.

At 6’4”, 220 pounds, Martin is a big target at receiver. However, Martin doesn’t have the size of Nelson or Scott Chandler or the speed and quickness of Johnson.

Most likely, Martin will catch a handful of passes and play special teams in 2012.

8A: Re-Signed WR Derek Hagan

Derek Hagan takes the “8A” spot over Martin by way of the “what have you done for me lately” rule.

Although Martin averages more yards per catch for his career, Hagan caught 13 passes for 138 yards and one touchdown in just four games for the Bills in 2011.

Again, this is not exactly a huge splash of a signing, but Hagan will likely see more playing time on offense than Martin will next year, giving him the nod.

If the Bills decide to draft a playmaking receiver in the draft (Michael Floyd, perhaps?), Ryan Fitzpatrick will find himself throwing to Johnson, Nelson and Floyd instead of either of these two players.

7: Re-Signed K Rian Lindell

Rian Lindell will enter his 10th season in Buffalo in 2012 after the organization decided to bring him back on a four-year, $11 million deal.

Every football team needs a kicker; it's not rocket science. But four years and $11 million for Lindell seems a bit steep to me.

First there are Lindell’s positives.

There’s certainly something to be said of his longevity in the league. Especially when you consider that if kickers miss more than two kicks in a row, the team starts to look for his replacement.

Lindell has also had his fair share of game-winning kicks. In addition, Lindell ranks 27th all-time in career field goal percentage.

But Lindell is coming back after missing half of the season last year due to a broken shoulder, and while he doesn’t need his shoulder to kick field goals, there’s always the risk of re-injuring it after one hit or accident.

Hopefully, the investment pays off.

6: Re-Signed DB Bryan Scott

Although Scott doesn’t start on defense, he’s proven to be a solid role player and glue guy for the Bills in recent years.

Last season, Scott recorded 66 tackles to go with two interceptions and a sack, while playing in all 16 games.

Scott has been a player who does all of the little things well in a limited role and should put up similar numbers next season.

5: Re-Signed LB Kirk Morrison

Morrison didn’t play much a season ago with the Bills, but the switch to a 4-3 defense may increase his role in 2012.

Morrison had a great start to his career in five seasons with the Oakland Raiders, where he never recorded fewer than 116 tackles dating back to his rookie year.

If Morrison can return to a familiar defensive system, I don’t see any reason why he can’t record more than 100 tackles yet again.

4: Re-Signed TE Scott Chandler

The 6’7” tight end burst onto the scene in 2011 as one of Ryan Fitzpatrick’s favorite red-zone targets (and at 6’7”, how could you ignore him?).

In the first three games of the 2011 season, Chandler had nine catches for 83 yards and four touchdowns. But after that point, Chandler’s production really dipped.

His only touchdown catches from Week 3 forward came against the Washington Redskins on Oct. 30, when he caught two passes (both for scores).

Although Chandler couldn’t find his rhythm after a stellar start in 2011, this signing shouldn’t be overlooked. There are a lot of quarterbacks in the NFL who would love to have a weapon like Chandler in the red zone.

3: Signed Free-Agent DE Mark Anderson

Just six days after another marquee signing of a defensive end, the Buffalo Bills made yet another splash by signing free-agent defensive end Mark Anderson.

Anderson had an under-appreciated 10-sack season in 2011 for the New England Patriots, and he will be one of the major components to helping the Bills woeful pass rush next year.

Last season, Marcell Dareus led the Bills with 5.5 sacks; Anderson nearly doubled that output a season ago.

The Bills did a fantastic job addressing a pressing need on the defensive side of the ball, not to mention the fact that they took a threat away from a division rival.

2: Re-Signed WR Stevie Johnson

Re-signing Stevie Johnson to an extension was certainly a necessity. Ryan Fitzpatrick’s No. 1 receiver will return as his primary target once again in 2012.

Johnson has recorded back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons, and although he may need to work on eliminating some of his dropped passes, he’s still an elite receiver.

Not only will Johnson return, but I think the Bills were able to retain him at an extremely reasonable price.

The five-year, $36.25 million extension ensures that Johnson will be Fitzpatrick’s go-to guy for years to come, and after a rough season a year ago where Fitzpatrick led the NFL in interceptions, he needs all the weapons he can get.

1: Signed Free-Agent DE Mario Williams

Without a doubt, the biggest and best move the Bills have made so far this offseason.

Signing Mario Williams addressed the Bills' biggest weakness in a huge way.

After recording just 29 sacks in 2011 (third fewest in the NFL), the Bills went out and got one of the league’s premier pass rushers.

Although some critics say that the Bills overpaid for Williams with the six-year, $100 million deal (with $50 million of guaranteed money), I don’t think they’ll regret their decision.

If the Bills didn’t let Williams know they were serious by putting down a big offer, another team might have swooped in and prevented the Bills from adding a major threat.

As an organization, when you see ticket sales soaring as the result of one free-agent signing, you know you’re doing something right.