Archives for March 2015

'Ryan said in Indianapolis at the Scouting Combine last month that Hughes was a priority based on his performance against Ryan and the AFC East over the past two years. The Bills hiring Ryan was a selling point for Hughes.'

'Clearly offensive line – and potentially coaching – played a role in Jackson’s struggles.'

'On 83 total kickoff attempts, he carried a 63.4-percent conversion percentage and allowed only 19.9 yards per return. Terms of the contract were undisclosed.'

'"I’ve said this before: when you don’t have a large chunk of your cap eaten up by a marquee quarterback, you can spend it other ways," he started. "We’re gonna heavily invested in the defensive line, but that’s one of the ways we’re going to have to play to win with the makeup of our squad: play good defense, run the ball and have the quarterback protect the ball. So that’s how we’re building this team.”'

'Since the start of last season, Hughes ranks fourth amongst all AFC defensive ends in sacks with 20.0. With 20.0 sacks in his first two seasons with the team, Hughes became the fourth Bill to ever record 20 sacks in his first two years.'

'It’s an amazing feeling. It feels great. Huge thanks to Terry Pegula, Kim Pegula, Doug Whaley, Russ Brandon, my agent Tracy Lartigue making all this happen. I’m excited, but now it’s back to work. Kind of like our main focus is to get an AFC East banner hanging up in this building, so that’s the plan. Just get back to work and continue working to try to get better from before.'

'The multi-year deal for Gay gives clear indication that the club intends to move forward with the kickoff specialist. Last season, Gay’s first with the Bills, he finished ninth in the league in touchback percentage with a success rate of 60.5 percent, improving the team’s touchback rate almost 20 percent from 2013 (41.5%) when Buffalo ranked 24th in the league.'

'With the arrival of Greg Roman’s offensive scheme tight ends will be needed in numbers. The Bills will be looking for a tight end that can serve in-line, detached, on the move and out of the backfield. Scott Chandler has been among the most productive receiving threats in Buffalo. MarQueis Gray and Chris Gragg have shown flashes but both are early in their careers. Lee Smith’s status remains uncertain as he approaches the start of free agency. We’ll see where the team goes as the team moves through free agency and the draft.'

'McCoy’s salary cap number in 2015, however, will be $5.5 million. That accounts for his base salary, workout bonus and prorated amount of his signing bonus ($2.625 million). That’s nearly $5 million less than the $10.25 million he was scheduled to count against the Bills’ cap under the terms of his old contract – a key maneuver for the team to free up cap space to take into free agency, which begins Tuesday.'

'Only the top 51 salaries on a team's payroll count against the cap during the offseason, so factoring in those players and the projected money needed to sign draft picks, the Bills now have approximately $18.4 million in cap space. That's before any potential savings they could create by releasing contracted players, and offensive guard Kraig Urbik is at the top of that list. Cutting Urbik would free up $3.75 million.'

'Powell has been a favorite of Ryan since the two first met before the 2011 draft. The Jets picked Powell in the fourth round that season, and the Louisville product proceeded to rush for 1,296 yards on 332 attempts over the last four seasons. He will likely come cheap, but Powell would still further crowd the Bills' running back depth chart. Do the Bills have room for all five running backs?'

'Bills general manager Doug Whaley has said Dareus will be priority No. 1 for the Bills once the dust settles on free agency and the draft this season, but the deals for Suh and McCoy have made bringing Dareus back to Buffalo a bit more complicated.'

'McCoy, who will be 27 when the 2015 season starts, had three years remaining on his contract that carried cap hits of $10.25 million, $6.9 million and $7.6 million, but that contract had only $1 million left in guaranteed money. According to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports, McCoy's new contract is worth $40 million over five years with $26.5 million in guaranteed money. McCoy will receive $16 million in the first year of the deal, including $13 million up front.'

'Nothing like a deadline to increase the pressure in negotiations. Once other teams were allowed to contact Bills defensive end Jerry Hughes on Saturday, not only were the stakes raised in negotiations but the price the Bills will have to pay likely went up as well. Considering the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, New York Giants and New York Jets are all interesting in Hughes, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports, the Bills could be getting themselves into a bidding war to keep the pass rusher.'

'The final numbers on a restructured McCoy contract could also have an impact on what the Bills are able to do in free agency. McCoy's current contract is scheduled to carry a cap hit of $10.25 million in 2015. If the Bills are able to lower that by converting some of McCoy's salary to guaranteed money, they will have more flexibility when it comes to bringing back defensive end Jerry Hughes or aggressively pursuing other free agents.'