The Bills have placed a pair of players on the injured reserve list, announcing today that they’re sending tight end Charles Clay and cornerback Ron Brooks to IR (Twitter link via Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News).
After inking a massive five-year contract with the Bills in the offseason, Clay was limited to 13 games this year, as he battled knee and back issues. In his first season in Buffalo, Clay caught 51 balls for 528 yards and three touchdowns. Those numbers look similar to the ones he posted in 2014 in Miami – 58 receptions, 605 yards, three TDs – but the Bills were likely expecting more production from the veteran tight end after inking him to a $38MM offer sheet.
With a $10MM roster bonus owed to him in 2016, Clay will likely have his contract restructured in the offseason, but he’s not going anywhere for now, since that money is fully guaranteed.
As for Brooks, the defensive back who contributes primarily on special teams will be eligible for free agency at season’s end, so he may have played his last game with the Bills. His 2015 season came to an early end due to a neck injury.
Yet another reason to fire GM Whaley. They intentionally made the Clay contract a bad one so Miami wouldn’t match it. Well guess what Einstein, now your stuck with an oft-injured, slightly above average TE with a bad contract. The wasted money would have been better spent on an extension for Taylor, the first thing the Bills have had in last 15 years that resembles a quality starting NFL QB.