Okorafor, a former third-round pick for the Steelers, has spent the first six years of his NFL career in Pittsburgh. His first two seasons only saw the Nigerian find starting time as an injury replacement. After Okorafor finished out his rookie contract with two straight seasons as a starter, the Steelers rewarded him with a three-year, $29.25MM extension. After losing his starting job to first-round rookie Broderick Jones last year, though, the Steelers released Okorafor to free agency.
Now in New England, Okorafor will have the opportunity to re-earn a starting job and fill in for the departed Brown. Okorafor’s competition for the job will be Vederian Lowe, who started eight games in injury relief for the Patriots last year, and third-round rookie Caedan Wallace out of Penn State.
In additional offensive line news out of New England OTAs, second-year lineman Atonio Mafi was seen taking snaps at center behind starter David Andrews. Mafi, a former fifth-round pick who converted from defensive line to guard at UCLA, had yet to seen time at center while making five starts at left guard as a rookie. New offensive line coach Scott Peters and assistant offensive line coach Robert Kugler seem to have some interest in expanding his role on the line.
Here are some other rumors coming out of the AFC East:
We had reported previously that Jets head coach Robert Saleh had explored the idea of reducing the role of offensive coordinatorNathaniel Hackett. This exploration came after the seeing Hackett seemingly lost for options after the loss of starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers early in the season. A more recent report from ESPN’s Rich Cimini claims that Saleh is now taking a deeper role in the offense himself. The former defensive coordinator seems to be keeping a close eye over the shoulder of Hackett as their jobs both heat up in 2024.
Long-time Bills starting linebacker Matt Milano missed 12 games after suffering a season-ending knee injury last year. The team is looking to pair Milano back up with last year’s emergent starter Terrel Bernard, but that won’t be happening in OTAs. According to Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN, Milano is on schedule with his recovery, but “it’s probably going to be more closer to training camp until” he sees the field again.
Leslie Frazier served as the Bills’ defensive coordinator from 2017-22, but he was away from the team last season and he has not returned for the coming campaign. Buffalo has a replacement in place (Bobby Babich), but it remains to be seen if he will call plays.
Babich – promoted from the role of linebackers coach in January – has been with the team since 2017, and he drew coordinator interest from outside teams during the 2024 hiring cycle. This Buffalo gig represents his first DC posting in the NFL, however, and Babich has not called a defense at either the college or pro levels to this point in his career.
Head coach Sean McDermott called plays last year, and he said earlier this month that a final decision will not be made on that front until at least training camp. Whichever direction the team goes, the coach guiding the unit will face considerable expectations. To little surprise, though, Babich will receive the chance to handle play-calling duties this summer before McDermott elects to either hand over the reins or repeat his workload from 2023.
“There’s going to be intentionality on my part to make sure, whether it’s practice or preseason games, that Bobby’s given that opportunity,” McDermott said, via The Athletic’s Tim Graham (subscription required). “So it’s just a matter of when and for how long.”
It would come as little surprise if Babich were to operate as play caller during Buffalo’s exhibition games in addition to training camp practices. McDermott has plenty of experience in that regard dating back to his own DC tenures, and he guided the Bills to a fourth-place finish in scoring defense last year. The team has generally fared well on that side of the ball during the McDermott era (although their postseason performances have not matched regular season showings), and his familiarity with the role could help as a transition to plenty of new faces is made in 2024.
The likes of Tre’Davious White, Leonard Floyd, Tyrel Dodson, Jordan Poyerand (at least for now) Micah Hydeare no longer in the picture for Buffalo’s defense. One of the team’s top storylines will be their ability to fill the vacancies created by those absences, and the decision on play caller will of course be a key topic to follow during the summer. Babich will receive at least a brief look before McDermott makes a final decision.
Representation in Super Bowls has not stretched wide in the AFC over the past decade. Since 2013, all of four franchises — the Broncos, Patriots, Chiefs and Bengals — have represented the conference in Super Bowls. The NFC in that span has produced seven Super Bowl entrants.
Since 2001, QB-driven graphics regarding Super Bowl participation primarily feature four faces — those of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Patrick Mahomes. An AFC team employing a QB outside that quartet has only reached the Super Bowl three times (2002 Raiders, 2012 Ravens, 2021 Bengals) in 24 seasons. As the NFC has rolled out 21 Super Bowl QB starters since Brady’s first appearance, it has been quite difficult for outsiders to forge a path in the AFC.
This space used to ask which team was best positioned to KO the Patriots in the AFC. The Chiefs ended up getting there, first loading up around Mahomes’ rookie contract before assembling a low-cost (but highly effective) defense to help a team suddenly limited — beyond the Mahomes-Travis Kelce connection’s enduring brilliance — following the Tyreek Hill trade. As the Chiefs aim to become the first team since the mid-1960s Packers to threepeat (part one of Green Bay’s offering occurred before the Super Bowl era), which conference challenger is best built to disrupt their path back?
The AFC North appears a good place to start. The Ravens open the season with an Arrowhead Stadium trek and held the AFC’s No. 1 seed last season. Lamar Jackson skated to MVP honors, and Mike Macdonald‘s defense led the league in scoring. But familiar issues resurfaced for the team in the AFC championship game. An oddly pass-focused Baltimore effort ground to a halt, as Jackson committed two turnovers. Macdonald has since departed — the first Ravens coordinator to leave for a head coaching job since Gary Kubiak in 2015 — and ex-Baltimore linebacker Zach Orrmoved into the DC post. The team also lost three starters up front. Although quiet in free agency (in terms of outside hires) beyond the splashy Derrick Henryaddition, the Ravens added likely cornerback starter Nate Wiggins in Round 1 and kept Justin Madubuike off the market via the franchise tag and a quick extension.
Cincinnati has shown superior mettle against Kansas City since Joe Burrow‘s arrival, beating the Chiefs thrice in 2022 before falling as both teams battled key injuries in the January 2023 AFC title game. The Bengals losing Burrow in November removed a key obstacle in the Chiefs’ path, but the NFL’s highest-paid player is back. The team also retained Tee Higgins, being the only team left to have a player on the tag, and added new tackles inTrent Brown and Amarius Mimsto join Orlando Brown Jr. The team revamped its safety corps by bringing back Vonn Bell and adding ex-RavenGeno Stone. Not many glaring issues are present in Cincinnati’s lineup, with longer-term matters — the receiver situation chief among them — the top roster storylines here.
Creeping into the playoffs despite a host of high-profile injuries on offense, the Browns showed their roster strength by shrugging off the injuries to Deshaun Watson, Nick Chubb and their tackles. Cleveland acquired Jerry Jeudy via trade and then extended him, and other than adding some Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah supporting pieces at linebacker, returns the starters from a No. 1-ranked pass defense. Watson’s struggles, for the most part, since arriving via trade will continue to define where the Browns can venture.
Although the Bills parted with Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, looking past Buffalo — a four-time reigning AFC East champion that defeated the Chiefs in three straight seasons in Kansas City — would probably be a mistake. The Bills made some cost-cutting moves, most notably disbanding its seven-year safety duo of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer (though Hyde remains in play to return), and saw concerning form from Von Miller following his second ACL tear. The Bills also lost Leonard Floyd in free agency. Focus will understandably be aimed at Buffalo’s WR crew, which now housesCurtis Samuel, second-rounder Keon Colemanand ex-Chief Marquez Valdes-Scantling(who certainly places a premium on QB talent). The Chiefs’ issues staffing their wideout spots last year provided a lingering problem; will the Bills make a higher-profile addition down the line?
With their backs to the wall, the Joe Douglas–Robert Saleh regime will count on Aaron Rodgers belatedly delivering. The duo may or may not have attempted to strip power from OC Nathaniel Hackett, who is coming off a brutal two-year stretch. The Jets effectively replaced Bryce Huff with a more proven rusher inHaason Reddick and added Mike Williamsas a supporting-caster on offense. The team will hope its pair of 33-year-old tackles — Tyron Smith, Morgan Moses — holds up, while Olu Fashanu looms as a long term tackle piece and potential short-term guard. Can the Jets do enough offensively to capitalize on their defensive nucleus of the past two seasons?
The Texans sit as a fascinating piece of this puzzle, given their outlook going into the first three seasons of Nick Caserio‘s GM tenure. After low-key offseasons from 2021-23, Houston added Diggs and a few notable defenders to the DeMeco Ryans-led roster. Danielle Hunter and Denico Autry join ex-Ryans 49ers pupil Azeez Al-Shaairas key defensive additions. Although Diggs struggled down the stretch in his final Bills season, he certainly played a lead role in elevating Josh Allen‘s stature. The Texans, who have C.J. Stroud on a rookie deal through at least 2025, will hope the Pro Bowler pairs well with Nico Collins and the returning Tank Dell.
Miami and Jacksonville’s roster equations figure to change soon, as respective extension talks withTua Tagovailoa and Trevor Lawrenceare ongoing. The Dolphins have faded badly under Mike McDaniel and did not seriously threaten the Chiefs in a frigid wild-card game, though they have obviously shown elite offensive capabilities in the right environment. Handing the play-calling reins to OC Press Taylor in 2023, the Jaguars did not build on a strong 2022 finish. The Steelers also present one of the highest floors in NFL history, and they have upgraded at quarterback by adding two options — in Justin Fields and likely starterRussell Wilson. But they also have not won a playoff game since the six-field goal offering against the Chiefs — a game that represented the final shove for Kansas City to trade up for Mahoemes — seven years ago.
The Texans emerged from the NFL’s basement last season. Is there a stealth contender lurking? The Chiefs’ division does not look particularly imposing, once again, though Jim Harbaugh now overseeing Justin Herbert is certainly an interesting development. The national championship-winning HC has authored turnarounds everywhere he has gone.
No team has qualified for five Super Bowls in a six-year period, and none of the Super Bowl era’s threepeat efforts have reached the final stage; the 1990 49ers came closest, losing on a last-second field goal in the NFC title game. Who is poised to be the best Chiefs deterrent on their path to a threepeat? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your AFC thoughts in the comments section.
Terry and Kim Pegula shared equal ownership of the Bills upon buying the team in 2014, but the heart attack Kim suffered in June 2022 has brought a belated update to that status. A February 2023 Terry Pegula filing led to Kim being ruled incapacitated and her husband serving as her guardian, according to The Athletic’s Tim Graham (subscription required). Kim Pegula is not expected to be back with the Bills, Graham reports. Days after the ruling, Laura Pegula — Terry’s daughter from his first marriage — represented the Bills at owners meetings. Soon after, Terry transferred a “small percentage” of the team to Laura to comply with NFL rules regarding succession planning, Graham adds.
While this is an obviously concerning update regarding the health of Kim Pegula, 54, Graham indicates many Bills employees are in the dark about her prognosis and Laura Pegula’s role. Each May, teams are required to have succession plans in place. Previously, Kim was set to act as Bills principal owner as a bridge to the couple’s children; Terry is 73. The succession setup may soon become an issue. Bills employees had assumed tennis prodigy Jessica Pegula, Kim’s oldest child and the WTA’s No. 5-ranked player, and her husband, Taylor Gahagen, would eventually run the team. Jessica wrote a Players’ Tribune piece about her mother’s condition in February 2023, informing the public Kim had suffered brain damage from the heart attack. Months after that column, Graham reports Gahagen had been removed from his position as Bills director of corporate development and Laura had been given an equity stake in the franchise.
Remaining in place as CEO of the Bills and Buffalo Sabres, Terry Pegula has not answered questions publicly about the team since 2019. This update certainly calls into question, particularly in light of how the Broncos ended up being sold, the 11th-year owner’s succession view. Here is the latest from the AFC East:
Nathaniel Hackett believes, despite reports the Jets attempted to have some his power stripped this offseason, Robert Saleh still has full confidence in him as OC. “I don’t know what those reports are and I don’t know where their sources came from,” Hackett said, viaSNY. “I know what happened with us. It was great. We had a lot of conversations, got to talk to a lot of different people. It’s that simple. It’s already been addressed. … We had a lot of changes, so we were talking to a lot of people.” No known change to the Jets’ offensive plan came about this offseason, though the team has added some new position coaches. Aaron Rodgers has stumped for Hackett on many occasions, and the duo’s relationship from their Green Bay days is largely why the embattled play-caller remains in place. After a rough year as Broncos HC and losing Rodgers four plays into his debut as Jets OC, Hackett joins Saleh and GM Joe Douglas on the hot seat.
Bills right tackle Spencer Brown will not participate fully in OTAs due to undergoing offseason shoulder surgery, Sean McDermott said (via ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg). The Bills battled injuries at many positions last season, but they were healthy along their offensive front. Brown, who has been the team’s primary RT starter since his 2021 rookie year, played all 17 Buffalo games in 2023.
This offseason has brought changes to the wide receiver market, but a host of wideouts chosen early in the 2020 draft have taken center stage. Most NFL teams have authorized a big-ticket (by today’s standards) deal for a wide receiver. Ranked by guaranteed money and excluding rookie contracts and accords acquired via trade, here is the most lucrative WR deal in each franchise’s history.
Larry Fitzgerald‘s seven-year, $113MM extension (August 2011) holds the Cardinals standard for total value, but Hopkins’ pact checks in higher in terms of guarantees and AAV.
In total, Michael Crabtree‘s 2018 deal (worth $21MM) and Derrick Mason‘s 2005 agreement ($20MM) surpass Beckham’s. But the 2023 Baltimore rental’s guarantee came in higher.
The Browns have featured three higher-paid receivers on their roster since Landry’s contract, but both Odell Beckham Jr. and Amari Cooper arrived via trade and played on contracts designed by other teams. Jerry Jeudy‘s AAV ($17.5MM) on his 2024 extension also outpaces Landry’s, though the recent trade pickup’s total guarantee falls short here.
JuJu Smith-Schuster‘s 2023 deal trails Agholor’s in AAV but carried the same full guarantee. Danny Amendola‘s full payout ($28.5MM) in 2013 tops both deals.
Allen Lazard‘s 2023 deal and Santonio Holmes‘ contract back in 2011 brought more in total value ($44MM and $45MM, respectively) but did not match Davis’ for guarantees.
Mike Evans; March 9, 2018: Five years, $82.5MM ($55MM guaranteed; $38.26MM guaranteed at signing)
Chris Godwin‘s 2022 deal beats Evans’ for at-signing guarantees ($40MM), while the all-time Bucs receiving leader’s 2024 agreement leads the way in AAV ($20.5MM).
MAY 21: When speaking to the media Tuesday, McDermott confirmed (via 13WHAM’s Dan Fetes) the Bills are still open to a Hyde reunion. With neither side proceeding with much urgency, the potential for a deal could linger well into the offseason. Should Hyde attempt to play in 2024, though, the team is set to welcome him back.
MAY 16: The Bills were down nearly half their starting defense by the time their near-annual Chiefs playoff matchup occurred, but Micah Hyde was one of the cogs available. Hyde returned in 2023 after missing most of the 2022 season due to a neck injury.
Hyde’s second Bills contract — a two-year, $19.25MM extension — expired after the season, and the veteran safety remains a free agent. A pivotal addition in Sean McDermott‘s first offseason, Hyde is not planning to leave Buffalo. Hyde said Thursday (via WGRZ’s Jon Scott) 2024 plans consist of either re-signing with the Bills or retiring. Though, he has not decided on playing again just yet.
“I really don’t know,” Hyde said, via the Buffalo News’ Jay Skurski. “You guys know … how difficult it was with my neck and having those stingers. So I just said, let me get away from it a little bit. And if the time comes and the juices get flowing again, then we’ll try to give it a spin. But, there’s no rush at all on my side.”
Hyde, 33, went down in Week 3 of the 2022 season, leading to Damar Hamlin‘s run of starts alongside Jordan Poyer. The seven-year Bills contributor returned last year in what turned out to be his last run with Poyer in Buffalo. Hyde started 14 games and intercepted two passes. Pro Football Focus graded the Iowa alum just outside the top 50 at the position. He also suffered two stingers, missing three games, upon returning from the neck issue. Past his prime, Hyde may see his pledge tested due to the Bills’ offseason activity.
Buffalo released Poyer a year after re-signing him, doing so shortly before re-signing Taylor Rapp. The Bills also added recent Chiefs fill-in starter Mike Edwards. Their most notable safety addition, however, came in the draft; the Bills chose Utah’s Cole Bishopin Round 2. This assortment, which still features Hamlin, stands to complicate a Hyde return. That said, the Bills will be much lighter on experience at this position compared to the past several years.
One of the longest-running safety tandems in modern NFL history, Hyde and Poyer gave the Bills a top-flight back-line duo for seven seasons. Hyde’s neck injury came a year after his second All-Pro season. The Bills made moves to cut costs at several positions this offseason, moving on from Poyer, Mitch Morse, Tre’Davious White and both their top wide receivers (though, the Stefon Diggs move was not exactly a money-saver). That said, Hyde would not qualify — especially given the state of the safety market — as a player who would command too much to return. His lack of desire to play elsewhere obviously would play into the Bills’ hands.
Hyde has been cleared to play, and GM Brandon Beane said earlier this offseason he did not expect the 11-year vet to retire. It appears likely the team will try its current setup at safety, but Hyde not being interested in relocating would stand to give the Bills an insurance option — should the ex-Packer indeed stick to his Buffalo-or-bust pledge — in the event its younger crew underwhelms in the months to come.
In the weeks following the 2024 NFL Draft, a number of teams have made changes to their player personnel staff and scouting departments. The Bills, for example, recently announced six updates to a scouting staff that should look fairly different in the coming season.
One of the updates we had seen reported days earlier by Neil Stratton of SucceedinFootball.com, who reported that long-time Cardinals area scout Darius Vinnettwould be accepting a similar role in Buffalo. Vinnett had been in Arizona for 11 years and had won the Rod Graves College Scouting Award, given at the conclusion of the draft to the Cardinals’ best scout, in 2022. The team also added Vince Magri as a pro scout after having served most recently as the assistant general manager of the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League.
The rest of the moves were promotions to staffers already in place. Matt Bazirgan, formerly the Bills’ senior personnel executive, has been named director of college scouting. Asil Mulbah, whose pro scout position was filled by Magri, has been promoted to assistant director of pro scouting. Keith Jennings joins Vinnett as an area scout after previously working as the team’s BLESTO scout. Lastly, R.J. Webb, previously a pro scout, will now serve as a college scout and will take up Jennings’ former role as BLESTO scout.
Here are a few other scouting updates from around the AFC:
After establishing Eliot Wolf as the pinnacle of their personnel structure the Patriots have made a number of alterations to their staff. According to Stratton, pro scouting director Steve Cargile and area scout Taylor Reddwill not be returning for the 2024 NFL season. Cargile had been with New England since 2011, while Redd had been around since 2018, meaning both were around for the team’s most recent Super Bowl victory. Replacing Redd will be new area scout Casey Belongia, previously of the Jaguars. Belongia started his career as an equipment manager for the Packers, residing in Green Bay at the same time as Wolf.
Lastly, the Browns are bringing Josh Lucasback to the game as their Mid-Atlantic area scout, per Stratton. Lucas had spent the past two years away from the game of football after serving as the Bears director of player personnel. Prior to his time in Chicago, Lucas had been an area scout for the Saints for 10 years and an intern in Jacksonville.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling trudged through an inconsistent 2023 season, albeit one that included pivotal contributions in the playoffs. But the two-time Super Bowl champion attracted a decent market in the weeks following the draft.
Post-draft signings not affecting teams’ 2025 compensatory formula played into the MVS chase, which featured a few teams. Although the Bills won out for the two-year Chiefs starter, the Chargers also arranged a visit. The Saints were part of this pursuit as well, according to Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz.
New Orleans cut the cord on Michael Thomasthis offseason, shedding the uniquely constructed contract as a post-June 1 cut. The team did add Cedrick Wilson Jr.in free agency, but the second-generation NFL wideout is coming off a down Dolphins tenure. While the Saints have first-rounder Chris Olave entrenched as their top target and found a gem in UDFA Rashid Shaheed, more complementary help would make sense going into Dennis Allen‘s third year as head coach.
The Saints used a fifth-round pick on Pittsburgh’s Bub Means and also addedEquanimeous St. Brown as a flier-type free agent. Sixth-round pick A.T. Perry showed promise as a rookie, averaging 20.5 yards per catch (12 receptions, 246 yards, four touchdowns). The team also has receiving tight end Juwan Johnson and enduring jack of all trades Taysom Hill to help Derek Carr in his second New Orleans season. With the market thinning following the signings of MVS, Odell Beckham Jr., DJ Chark and Zay Jones, the Saints may be prepared to go with their current receiving cast.
Valdes-Scantling’s Bills deal is worth up to $4.25MM. With the base value assuredly checking in lower, it is worth wondering if the Saints made an offer. MVS visited the Bills this week, and ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler adds the six-year veteran had dinner at Josh Allen‘s house during his Buffalo trek. This meeting helped convince the former Packers fifth-round pick to join a crowded but uncertain Bills receiving corps.
The Bills let Gabe Davis defect to the Jaguars in March and, despite incurring a non-quarterback record $31MM in dead money, the team traded Stefon Diggs to the Texans in April. The team used a second-round pick on Florida State’sKeon Coleman. The 6-foot-4 rookie will be expected to play a key role on a team flooded with midlevel veterans. In addition to Valdes-Scantling, the Bills have signed Curtis Samuel, Chase Claypool, Mack Hollins and KJ Hamler. This cast’s makeup points to MVS carving out a role in a group that will also need 2022 draftee Khalil Shakir to continue an upward trajectory.
MVS joined the likes of Kadarius Toney and Skyy Moore in struggling for an unreliable (beyond Rashee Rice) Chiefs receiving corps last season. Formerly attached to a three-year, $30MM deal, the 6-4 target struggled down the stretch in 2022 as well. The inconsistent deep threat still totaled 687 receiving yards in his Kansas City debut and produced a six-catch, 116-yard performance in the ’22 AFC title game — with the other prominent Chiefs wideouts unavailable due to injury — to help the hosts fend off the Bengals despite Patrick Mahomes limited with a high ankle sprain.
Committing a brutal drop in a narrow loss to the Eagles, Valdes-Scantling finished the regular season with just 315 yards. But he came up big against the Bills (two catches, 62 yards) and caught a conference-clinching lob from Mahomes against the Ravens before scoring a touchdown against the 49ers. The Bills will hope their newest addition can at least commandeer an auxiliary role within their post-Diggs WR crew.
The Bills have added depth to their secondary while giving their special teams a boost. The team announced on Thursday that safety Dee Delaneyhas been signed.
The 29-year-old began his career with one-year stints in Jacksonville and Washington. During that span, Delaney appeared in only three games, and he was all-but exclusively used on special teams. After seeing sparse defensive playing time with those teams (and spending brief tenures on the Dolphins’ practice squad and the Jets’ offseason roster in between), though, he found a home in Tampa Bay.
Delaney joined the Buccaneers in 2021, and in his first campaign with the team he played over 200 defensive snaps – a notable increase from the four he had previously logged. The former UDFA again saw most of his action come in the third phase, and that continued the following season. Last year, though, Delaney took on a rotational role in the Bucs’ secondary, seeing two starts. He notched career highs in interceptions (two) and pass deflections (five) while making 25 tackles.
Buffalo released Jordan Poyeras part of the team’s cost-cutting moves this offseason. His longtime running mate at the safety spot (Micah Hyde) is unsigned, and his playing future remains in doubt. The Bills brought in Mike Edwards during free agency and re-signed Taylor Rapp before selecting Cole Bishop in the second round of the draft. Delaney will therefore have plenty of competition for playing time in his latest home.
In a corresponding move, wideout Quintez Cephushas been released. The former Lion was signed last month in a deal which followed his reinstatement from a gambling suspension. That seemed to put Cephus on track for a rotational spot in the team’s receiver room, but Buffalo signed Marquez Valdes-Scantlingearlier this week. Cephus, 26, will now return to free agency and attempt to find a new opportunity elsewhere.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds this one-year pact includes a $1.125MM signing bonus. The deal carries a maximum value of $4.5MM, and it eliminates another receiver from the post-draft free agent market. Valdes-Scantling will aim to provide Buffalo with a vertical threat in the team’s vastly different 2024 wideout setup.
The Bills lost Gabe Davisin free agency when he inked a three-year, $39MM deal with the Jaguars. Davis proved himself to be an effective field-stretcher during his four years in Buffalo, averaging 16.7 yards per reception. It came as little surprise when he departed, though, as the team turned its attention elsewhere in the pass-catching corps.
At the time of Davis’ departure, Stefon Diggswas still in place as the Bills’ top receiver. He was dealt to the Texans in April, however, creating a notable vacancy in terms of targets in the Buffalo passing attack. Curtis Samuelwas added in free agency, and (after trading down twice) the team used its top draft pick on Keon Coleman. Quarterback Josh Allenwas on board with selecting the Florida State product, and it will be interesting to see how their chemistry develops in 2024 and beyond.
Valdes-Scantling spent the past two seasons in Kansas City, helping the team win back-to-back Super Bowls. The 29-year-old only saw his catch percentage (51.2%) improve slightly compared to his tenure in Green Bay, and issues related to drops will no doubt be a talking point if they continue this season as he joins the Bills. Valdes-Scantling also met with the Chargers before his Buffalo summit, but he has elected to join Allen and Co. as they look to improve on last year’s run to the divisional round.
Buffalo’s switch to Joe Brady as offensive coordinator midway through the 2023 campaign saw the team lean more heavily on the running game. That will likely continue this season, with tight ends Dalton Kincaidand Dawson Knoxeach having a notable role. The receiver room will look much different, however, and Valdes-Scantling will look to carve out a starting spot ahead of free agency next offseason.
