The Buffalo Bills made a series of cost-cutting moves on Wednesday in an effort to get under the salary cap next season, releasing safety Jordan Poyer, center Mitch Morse, cornerback Tre’Davious White, defensive back Siran Neal, wide receiver Deonte Harty and running back Nyheim Hines.
The moves are expected to eventually save the team somewhere in the vicinity of $36-37 million on the cap sheet, per multiple reports:
The roster gutting won’t completely get the team under the salary cap, though restructuring the contract of superstar quarterback Josh Allen could get the team the rest of the way there:
And more roster relief came after the glut of cuts, as Von Miller agreed to a restructured deal with the team, per ESPN’s Field Yates:
Buffalo faced the reality that many contending teams have to endure once the star quarterback is onto his second contract—eventually, it becomes difficult to find money for other positions on the roster, especially if you are paying big money to retain other stars.
In that regard, the Bills will not be the only team forced to face some difficult decisions this offseason from a cap perspective.
On a personal level, it’s surely a tough day in the organization. From a business and roster-building perspective, some of Wednesday’s cuts will hurt more than others.
White, 29, is a two-time Pro Bowl cornerback and one-time All-Pro selection, but injuries have cost him 30 games over the past three seasons. Talented as he is, it becomes tough for a team to devote a large chunk of its financial resources to a player who misses well over half the games in a three-year period.
Poyer, 32, was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2021 and a Pro Bowler in 2022, and he had another strong season in 2023, notching 100 tackles and four passes defensed across 16 games. But given his age, he was a risk to regress in 2024 and made sense as a cap casualty.
Those were the three biggest decisions, with players like Neal, Harty and Hines serving as more niche options for the team. But the Bills may also lose a number of free agents, including wideout Gabe Davis, defensive end DaQuan Jones and defensive ends Leonard Floyd and A.J. Epenesa.
It’s not all doom and gloom for the team, but it will need to nail the draft and find breakout options in the free agency bargain bin this offseason. General manager Brandon Beane set those expectations in January.
“I don’t think you’re going to see any splashes,” he told reporters regarding free agency. “Even if I found something that was exciting to me, I don’t think it would fit within our cap parameters. I think everyone needs to understand that we’re going to be shopping at some of those same stores we were shopping last year. We’re not going to be on Main Street of New York City or whatever all those high-end shopping centers are. It’s not feasible to where we’re at.”
