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Dane Jackson

Bills Notes: Cook, Cornerback, Ateman, Coaching Staff

June 22nd, 2023 at 8:32pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bills have done some work revamping their running back depth chart this offseason, but the team’s main holdover believes he’s ready to secure the starting gig. During an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, James Cook made it clear that he’s ready to be the team’s top running back.

“Obviously, RB1,” Cook responded when asked about his role in 2023 (h/t Ryan Talbot of NewYorkUpstate.com). “So you know, just come in and do what I do. Change the game with my versatility. Catching the ball out of the backfield. Pass blocking. Just try to do what I can do to help the team win games and ultimately win the Super Bowl.”

The Georgia product was a second-round pick by the Bills last offseason and ended up getting into 16 games as a rookie. While he played second fiddle to Devin Singletary, Cook still finished the season with 687 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns. Singletary is now out of the picture, although the Bills did bring in Damien Harris and Latavius Murray for some extra depth.

Even with the additions, Cook is confident that he’s prepared to be the starter, and the second-year player sounds like he’s ready to stand alongside his brother, Dalvin Cook, when it comes to the league’s top running backs.

“My goal is to be an All-Pro or Pro Bowler like my brother,” Cook said. “Hopefully be in the Pro Bowl with him one day.”

More notes out of Buffalo…

  • It’s uncertain who will start opposite Tre’Davious White at cornerback, but Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic believes the gig will ultimately come down to three players. Dane Jackson, Christian Benford, and 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam will “likely remain in a battle” for the CB2 gig once training camp opens, according to the writer. Buscaglia notes that the coaching staff has been adamant that the role won’t be influenced by contract or draft pedigree, meaning the competition is truly wide open for all three players.
  • The Bills added Marcell Ateman earlier this month, and Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets that the receiver inked a one-year, $940K deal. The wideout played for the St. Louis BattleHawks in the XFL this season, totaling 259 yards while not scoring a touchdown. The Oklahoma State product was a seventh-round pick by the Raiders in 2018, and he compiled 20 receptions for 270 yards and a touchdown through his first two seasons in the NFL. In Buffalo, he’s expected to be a special teamer and end-of-the-depth-chart option at WR.
  • The Bills announced yesterday (via Twitter) that they’ve promoted Eric Washington to assistant head coach/defensive line coach. The veteran coach joined the organization in 2020 as their DL coach, and he earned a promotion to senior defensive assistant before last season. He had previous stops with the Bears and Panthers, including a one-year stint as defensive coordinator in Carolina.
  • The Bills have some extra depth on the edge, meaning they could look to move on from one of their former second-round picks. Earlier today, our own Adam La Rose explored the trade candidacy of Carlos Basham Jr..

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/17/23

March 17th, 2023 at 10:28pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor moves from around the league:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Green Bay Packers

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Washington Commanders

 

Board is a strong special teamer, signing a two-year, $5MM deal with New England, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. The contract reportedly includes incentives that can push the deal to a maximum value of $6.7MM.

Colon-Castillo reportedly visited the Falcons today, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. Despite the visit, he decided to sign with the Jets.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/15/23

March 15th, 2023 at 9:04pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s tender decisions from around the NFL:

RFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/14/23

March 14th, 2023 at 9:59pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s tender decisions from around the NFL:

RFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Bills Place CB Xavier Rhodes On P-Squad Injured List

October 2nd, 2022 at 8:17am CST by Rory Parks

The hits keep coming for the Bills’ secondary. Veteran cornerback Xavier Rhodes, who signed with Buffalo just a few days ago, has been placed on the team’s practice squad injured list (Twitter link via ESPN’s Field Yates). Head coach Sean McDermott said that Rhodes sustained a hamstring injury (Twitter link via Chris Brown of OneBillsLive).

Buffalo’s top corner, two-time Pro Bowler Tre’Davious White, began the season on the PUP list and will therefore miss at least one more game as he continues to recover from an ACL tear. Fellow starter Dane Jackson suffered a neck injury in Week 2, and rookie Christian Benford fractured his hand during last Sunday’s loss to the Dolphins. That is not to mention safety Micah Hyde‘s season-ending neck injury or safety Jordan Poyer‘s foot ailment, which kept him out of the Miami contest and which rendered him questionable for the Bills’ Week 4 matchup against the Ravens.

The practice squad injured list operates under the same rules as the injured reserve. In other words, Rhodes will be forced to miss at least the next four games, at which point there may no longer be a roster spot for him. Indeed, Jackson returned to practice this week and is expected to suit up for the Baltimore game, as Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic tweets. The hope is that White will return shortly, and while Benford will miss time, he could nonetheless beat Rhodes back to the field.

Furthermore, even though Rhodes is on the taxi squad injured list, his activation from that list would still count as one of the Bills’ eight “return from IR” designations. It is possible that the team would elect against using such a designation on a player that had minimal practice time and never appeared in a game.

Rhodes, therefore, could be a free agent again in a few weeks and could be of interest to another team in need of secondary depth.

AFC Injury Updates: Bills, Raiders, Leonard

September 23rd, 2022 at 7:02pm CST by Ely Allen

As the Bills head to South Florida for a noon matchup against a red-hot Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins, they have seen a tough challenge get tougher. Buffalo released an injury update on its website today reporting that the team expects to be without four starters: two in the secondary, in safety Micah Hyde and cornerback Dane Jackson, and two defensive tackles, Ed Oliver and Jordan Phillips. Jackson, Hyde, and Phillips all left Monday night’s game with injuries, while Oliver will miss his second straight contest.

Jackson left the game last week after a collision that forced his head backwards in a scary-looking neck injury. He was taken off the field in an ambulance, but, luckily, avoided any major injury. Unfortunately, Jackson hasn’t been able to practice at all this week but has been able to be around the team at the facilities.

Hyde also suffered a neck injury, albeit a far less severe-looking injury than Jackson’s, that held him out of practice this week. Phillips left the game Monday with a hamstring injury and also was unable to practice this week. Oliver has been dealing with an ankle injury that held him out last week, as well.

Missing three starters in the secondary (cornerback Tre’Davious White remains on injured reserve) makes the prospect of facing Tagovailoa a bit more cumbersome one week after he threw for 469 yards and six touchdowns against a banged up Ravens secondary. They’ll turn to rookies Christian Benford and Kaiir Elam to fill in at cornerback with help from veteran Bills cornerbacks Taron Johnson and Siran Neal. Damar Hamlin and Jaquan Johnson will be asked to step up in Hyde’s absence, as well.

With both Phillips and Oliver out on the defensive line, it’s a good bet that the Bills will mirror their gameday practice squad call-ups from last week in defensive tackles C.J. Brewer and Brandin Bryant.

Here are a few more Sunday injury statuses we learned about today, starting with a couple of big starters out in Sin City:

  • The Raiders are set to face off against the Titans this weekend without two Pro Bowlers as wide receiver Hunter Renfrow and linebacker Denzel Perryman are officially out, according to Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Hill also reports that, after missing two practices with an illness, running back Josh Jacobs is questionable to play this Sunday.
  • Despite initial reports in the preseason that Colts star linebacker Shaquille Leonard would not miss any time, the 27-year-old is set to miss his third straight game after being ruled out against the Chiefs this week, according to Mike Chappell of Indianapolis Fox59. Head coach Frank Reich told the media, “Deep down it’s the player. Deep down the player has to know he can play winning football and help this team win. That’s where we’ve got to get to.”

Latest On Bills CB Dane Jackson

September 20th, 2022 at 10:09am CST by Adam La Rose

Last night’s Titans-Bills game featured a frightening moment when Bills cornerback Dane Jackson collided with teammate Tremaine Edmunds and suffered a neck injury in the process. He was ultimately taken off the field by an ambulance, leading to concerns about his short- and long-term health status. Encouraging reports have since come out on that front, however. 

Last night, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero tweeted that the 25-year-old underwent a CT scan and X-Ray, adding that he experienced full movement in his lower extremities. Adding to the positive news, Pelissero’s colleague Mike Garafolo reports that Jackson walked out of the hospital this morning, and there is a belief that a major injury has been avoided (video link).

A team update indicates that he will undergo further evaluation today to determine the length of his absence. That will become an important piece of information, given the fact the Buffalo is already without No. 1 corner Tre’Davious White. He remains on the reserve/PUP list, having been placed there last month; that move ensured that the All-Pro would be sidelined for at least the first four games of the season while he continues to recover from a torn ACL.

That made Jackson’s role even more important for a Bills secondary which faced questions at the CB spot entering the season. The former seventh-rounder logged a 97% snap share and recorded an interception in Week 1, and was in line to continue operating as a full-time starter until the injury. Especially until White returns, Buffalo will lean heavily on rookies Kaiir Elam and Christian Benford.

In other injury news, Pro Bowl safety Micah Hyde also left the game with a neck injury, as detailed by ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg. His status will be worth monitoring, as will that of Jackson, who very much appears to have avoided the worst-case scenario in his situation.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/26/21

January 26th, 2021 at 6:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Tuesday’s reserve/futures deals:

Buffalo Bills

Green Bay Packers

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/23/21

January 23rd, 2021 at 4:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest NFL minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed to reserve/futures deal: WR Deon Cain

Buffalo Bills

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Giants

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/15/21

January 15th, 2021 at 4:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest NFL minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Green Bay Packers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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