Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘Exhibiting a welcome dose of heartfelt honesty, Miller willingly pulled back the curtain to reveal the back and forth confliction he experienced when it came to choosing between staying with the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams and all the glitz, glamour, surf, sun and excitement of the Hollywood lifestyle that comes with Southern California, or moving across the country to, um, Buffalo, to play for a weather-challenged franchise forever in search of a maddeningly elusive NFL championship.’

‘The Bills made this move despite the fact that they will have to eat an ugly salary cap hit of $7.7 million, and will only see $1.5 million of cap space created by his departure.’

‘“I didn’t want to leave; I wish I didn’t,” he said Thursday after signing a one-year contract to return to the place that he said just feels like home. “It was sad because everyone thought I was leaving for the money. Me and Brandon talked and it just seemed like the better opportunity was for me to leave at the time and it served its purpose, but my end goal was always to come back here and I’m happy it worked out. A lot of smiley faces, everybody’s giddy, I’m real giddy. I haven’t slept yet. And I have so much energy right now that it’s a great feeling.”’

‘He was frustrated by his lack of playing time and sharing snaps with the likes of Akeem Spence, Davon Godchaux and Vincent Taylor, and made his feelings perfectly clear during a sideline tirade the day before he was cut.’

‘Lawson, who former coach Rex Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley selected with the 19th pick of the first round in the 2016 NFL Draft, is returning to the Bills after two years away, same as Phillips.’

‘Settle simply didn’t get much of an opportunity in Washington, but several evaluators have seen enough film to believe that with a change of scenery he could really have a breakout year for the Bills.’

‘The team also on Thursday re-worked the contract of Matt Milano which freed another $5.1 million.’

‘Miller has recorded 115.5 sacks during his 11-year NFL career including 9.5 combined between Denver and Los Angeles last season. He is an eight-time Pro Bowler, a three-time All-Pro, a two-time Super Bowl champ and was the MVP of Super Bowl 50.’

‘To be the dominant edge rusher the Bills have lacked since Williams enjoyed a 14.5 sack season in 2014. Miller is exactly the kind of player the Bills have needed throughout Sean McDermott’s tenure as head coach, an edge rusher who opposing offensive coordinators have to account for on every play.’

‘Howard was picked No. 19 overall in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, but his career has been marked by injuries. He has played in just 59 of a possible 81 games and has 119 catches for 1,737 yards and 15 TDs.’

‘Unlike Lotulelei who really hasn’t been any of those three things the last two years, Jones has been the opposite. Since 2015 he has missed only four games, all of those in 2017.’

‘Tuesday, the second day of the legal tampering window where teams can work out free agent deals with player agents, Beane turned toward a skill position in an effort to give Josh Allen another weapon to work with. The Bills agreeed to terms with running back J.D. McKissic on what is a reported two-year, $7 million contract.’

‘“Me and Aaron Kromer, we worked together on the LA Rams for two years when we had one of the top offensive lines in the NFL,” he said. “We were able to get to a Super Bowl together, we were able to turn the entire team around and get us to start getting into playoff games.’

‘McKenzie originally joined the Bills from Denver in 2018 and began to get meaningful playing time in 2019. That year he caught 27 passes for 254 yards and a touchdown, and also rushed 8 times for 49 yards, prompting the Bills to sign him for 2020.’

Here’s a breakdown of what Beane and his personnel staff, with obvious input from coach Sean McDermott, are looking at this week, and what I think they should do.’