By Nick Wojton / Billswire.usatoday.com
The Buffalo Bills made splash after splash during the free agency period earlier in the 2019 offseason.
In some cases, the Bills shelled out the dollars for players like center Mitch Morse. Others were under the radar additions.
Through some of those lower-tier contracts and youthful players on Buffalo’s roster that are solidifying themselves as NFL starters, the Bills have acquired some very team-friendly pieces over the years in a financial sense.
Kudos to Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane for that.
With that, here are six bargain contracts for the Bills in 2019:
QB Josh Allen – $4.81 M cap hit
Allen still has to prove himself as the franchise answer for the Bills in 2019 after an inconsistent rookie season. But there’s optimism. However, this list is about dollars and cents.
According to Spotrac, of the 10 largest contracts handed out in the NFL currently, eight of them are at the quarterback position. That comes as little surprise, but the Bills are currently not among that grouping. The hope is that they will be, but for the next two seasons, the Bills will have Allen on a premium bargain compared to his NFL counterparts. That will allow the Bills to invest elsewhere in their roster during that time, which is something the did this offseason.
Having said that, Beane himself will admit he will hope to find himself in a position negotiating a massive contract with Allen after his rookie deal expires. Translation: Allen becomes the answer.
S Jordan Poyer – $4.33 M cap hit
In terms of a veteran addition that the Bills signed via a cheap deal that has thrived, there’s none better for this list than Poyer. Prior to the 2017 season, Buffalo signed Poyer and Micah Hyde to man their safety spots. The two have turned into one of the best safety duos in the NFL in that short time. Of the two, Poyer’s contract is the one that’s the bargain.
In total, the Bills signed the “special teamer” at the time to a four-year, $13 million contract. Prior to coming to Buffalo, Poyer, 28, played four years for the Browns, notching two interceptions and six passes defended in 10 starts. In 31 games with the Bills, all starts, Poyer has nine picks and 19 passes defended. A home run signing for the Bills.
LB Lorenzo Alexander – $3.75 M cap hit
Alexander has always been an interesting case with the Bills. He’s 36, and perhaps being one of the eldest players on the team and league plays a part. But Alexander is only entering his fourth season with the Bills. It always has seemed as if he’s been on the team for much longer.
Undoubtedly the Bills got their best bargain on Alexander in 2016 when he signed a contract to contribute on special teams only to go on and record 12.5 sacks. Since then, Alexander hasn’t reached those totals, but he has done two big things.
First, he’s a leader off the field. Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott constantly acknowledges that. On the field, he re-vamped his own game to fit into McDermott’s scheme. He’s still a strong pass rusher (6.5 sacks in 2018), however, he was asked to play in more of a pass defending role as well. That turned into a career-high nine passes defended last season for Alexander. Next season could be his final run with retirement looming.
CB Tre’Davious White – $2.75 M cap hit
As Buffalo’s 2017 first-round pick, White’s addition to this list goes down a similar path as Allen. The 24-year-old defender is much more established than the QB, though. White is considered one of the NFL’s top outside cornerbacks by many and luckily the Bills are still paying him on his rookie contract.
Barring any major setback in 2019, the Bills would be crazy to not pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie deal. This past offseason the Bills were in the dark on what they would do with Shaq Lawson in that same scenario. It wouldn’t be a shock to see the team just come out and say at some point that they’re going to give White that option based on him being the cornerstone of McDermott’s secondary and defense.
LB Matt Milano – $710K cap hit
For comparison sake once again, we’ll defer back to Allen and White, but for Milano, double it. Both Allen and White are former first-round pick and with the NFL’s rookie wage scale in place, they’re due a bigger pay day from the Bills.
Milano came to the Bills via the 2017 draft class with White, but he was a fifth-round pick. The linebacker has trumped that draft status thus far in his career. With a playoff berth in 2019 for the Bills, one can envision Milano being a Pro Bowler and perhaps more.
Milano hasn’t gotten that national recognition he deserves, but Pro Football Focus loves it some Milano, as he notched as the NFL’s 13th best overall linebacker grade last year and sixth-best in terms of AFC teams. So really, he should have already landed a Pro Bowl nod.
OL Quinton Spain – $2.05M cap hit
All five previous mentioned additions by the Bills are from years past. Unless you include Alexander who recently signed a one-year extension. Of all the recent new faces, Spain could become the biggest bargain.
Aside from Mitch Morse, many of Buffalo’s additions along the offensive line were guys looking for opportunity to start. They either weren’t getting it where they were before, or their future was up in the air. That could describe Spain, but of that bunch, Spain’s past is the most solidified.
Spain is only 27 and has plenty of football ahead of him but Buffalo nabbed him on a one-year, “prove-it deal.” He’ll have to beat out the likes of Jon Feliciano, Spencer Long, and Wyatt Teller for a starter spot, but of the 50 games he’s appeared in during his career, 48 have been starts despite going undrafted in 2015. All of those came with the Titans and all are at his current position for the Bills, offensive guard. Long has 44 career stats, but many came at a different position, center. An experienced, former starting guard, on a low price tag in Spain is a good find for the Bills.
While not re-signed by his former team this offseason, mostly because many dubbed him as a bad fit for their zone-blocking scheme, Spain still finished last season with good marks from PFF.
The football analytics outlet graded him as the NFL’s 35th-best guard in the NFL in 2018.