Bills Offseason Needs NFL 2022: Free Agency & Draft Preview
The Buffalo Bills were one defensive stop away from beating the Chiefs and having a chance to play in the AFC Championship game (not an overtime one, just one with 13 seconds left). The Chiefs drove right down and kicked a field goal in less time than it took the Cowboys to run a quarterback draw (sorry, had to Dallas fans). The team lost Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, who was the best head coach hired this cycle, now it’s time to see how they can address the Bills offseason needs.
Free Agency
First, we gotta clear some cap space. The Bills are currently 6.5 million over the cap. A sneaky-cut candidate is Cole Beasley, who is just losing a step or two with age. That clears 6.1 million. Then guard Jon Feliciano is another one, that clears 3.3 million. Then restructuring the contracts of Diggs, White, and Dawkins clears up 6, 7.2, and 5.2 million respectively, so now we’ve got some money to work with. So, let’s start with bringing Levi Wallace back. He falls into that category of corners where you would like to upgrade, but you’d be fine with him being your number two. Then resign Jerry Hughes to a short-term deal. The Bills have a lot of young edge defenders, and bringing back that veteran presence will help that unit continue to grow. Now to the open market, let’s find another linebacker. We won’t be looking for the top-of-the-market guys, rather some decent role players. Two guys they should consider are Jayon Brown and Ja’Whaun Bentley. Then with Beasley being cut in this reality, and I would expect that to happen in the actual world as well, it’s time to go wide receiver hunting. To replace that slot role, I’d recommend going after Juju Smith-Schuster should he hit the open market.
Draft
Now time to hit the draft. The Bills have a late pick, but that shouldn’t be an issue because I want them targeting another wide receiver. They need to hit on late draft picks with Josh Allen making a very nice sum of money, so going to the draft to find more pass catchers is the way to go. It’s really “take your favourite guy” for this draft pick. Ideally, find someone who can stretch the field. George Pickens would be a great addition, a big body with legit speed would only benefit the Bills. Then from there, aim for a corner, and defensive linemen. If the Bills want a later round addition, Slade Bolden would be a nice addition to potentially replace Cole Beasley in the slot.
The Buffalo Bills are set to be contenders in the AFC for the foreseeable future. It’s all about surrounding Josh Allen with playmakers so he can continue to deal, and so the Bills can keep up with the Chiefs.
