By Nick Wojton / Billswire.usatoday.com
Most attention has turned to the upcoming 2020 NFL Draft at the end of April. But that doesn’t mean the free agent market has closed.
Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane recently spoke to reporters and admitted much of his attention is now on rookies. However, he also said that the young prospects don’t have his full attention. He’ll be sure to keep an eye on the open market, too.
Could there be any players still available that could interest the Bills? There certainly are.
Here are 10 players still on the open market for the Bills to consider:
RB Devonta Freeman
Age: 28
This connection between the Bills and Devonta Freeman have been made since before he was even cut by the Falcons this offseason.
Freeman could provide a complement to Devin Singeltary as a pass-catching option. He caught 59 catches in 2019 with the Falcons and 257 in his career, including 73 in the 2015 season. But by most accounts, Freeman took a step back last season. He only averaged 3.6 yards per carry last year, a career-low, but overall, Freeman is at 4.2 yards per carry for his career.
Still, Freeman could be a low-cost option to pair up with Singletary in Buffalo’s backfield. However, he’s not an overly-large player that would mix well with Singletary’s smaller, shifty game with the Bills and he’s not much of a special teams guy like TJ Yeldon would be. Overall as a back, Freeman has certainly had more success than Yeldon in his career, though.
WR Paul Richardson
Age: 27
It’s easy to see why Paul Richardson would still be on the open market. His career has been a very up-and-down affair. Richardson nabbed a five-year, $40 million deal with the Redskins and injuries flamed his career out. He was cut this offseason.
But Richardson did have a strong 2017 season with the Seahawks, grabbing 44 catches for 703 yards and six touchdowns. He averaged 16 yards per reception that year as well. But Richardson also had injury troubles prior to that breakout year, so that’s likely why he’s still on the market.
With his down-field abilities, the Bills could be interested. But he’s not an overly large wideout and the upcoming 2020 NFL Draft is rich with receivers, but that could keep Richardson’s contract low if someone like Buffalo took a flier on him.
DE Jadeveon Clowney
Age: 27
The Bills put an emphasis on improving their pass rush with the addition of Mario Addison already this offseason. Beane is probably looking for a cheaper option as opposed to Clowney, but strangely he’s still on the market, so could he turn into an affordable option?
In 2019 with the Seahawks he had three sacks. Clowney has been good in the past with 9.0 and 9.5 sack seasons in 2017 and 2018, respectively. But Pro Football Focus also backs that Clowney was still productive last year despite his dip in sacks. He was handed an 88.0 overall grade in 2018 and only dropped to a 87.3 mark last season, and he has the third-best edge defender grade from the analytics outlet in terms of defending the run since 2017 (91.3) as well.
If he came to Buffalo, that could make Trent Murphy a cap casualty, since the Bills still have to consider re-signing players of their own, such as Tre’Davious White, Matt Milano and Dion Dawkins in the near future.
QB Cam Newton
Age: 30
This one sounds unlikely. Not just at face value, but when asked about Cam Newton recently, Beane sounded like he believes Newton will land with a team as a starting quarterback. But Beane is a GM, not a fortune teller. That could happen. Or perhaps not.
If it’s the latter, could he come Josh Allen’s backup? Of course, that would add some pressure behind Allen, but maybe that does Allen some good and makes him a better player?
In addition, Newton knows the Bills’ brass with head coach Sean McDermott via Carolina, so he’ll understand what they want in their locker room. And maybe Allen gets hurt? Newton, a former MVP, would be a much better and more experienced backup than Matt Barkley, plus he’s got that Allen “mold” as opposed to Barkley.
It’s hard to consider Newton in Buffalo, but crazier things have happened.
RB Carlos Hyde
Age: 29
Carlos Hyde could exact type of free agent still out there that Beane referenced recently. While praising Yeldon, as McDermott has, Beane mentioned that Yeldon was inactive much of last season because Gore brought a bigger frame to the Bills’ backfield. That’s what Hyde would do.
And Hyde showed last season he’s still good and since Hyde’s still not signed, could he come cheap? Despite Hyde’s age, he’s coming off of a career year, in which he ran for 1,070 yards and averaged 4.4 yards per carry.
Perhaps the reasoning that Hyde is still on the open market is because of his early career, when he wasn’t exactly the most productive rusher. Plus there’s his age to consider as a running back.
DE Ezekiel Ansah
Age: 30
If the Bills were going to sign Ezekiel Ansah, this seems like they might’ve done so already when signing Addison. But while Ansah is still out there, he’s worth mentioning because Buffalo previously hosted him on a free agent visit a year ago in March of 2019.
After being franchise tagged by the Lions after six seasons there, the two sides couldn’t reach a deal, likely because of his injury history in recent years, notably battling a shoulder injury twice.
In 2019, he struggled with injuries once again, contributing just 2.5 sacks in 11 games for the Seahawks. But the appeal with Ansah is his skill when healthy. Twice in his career he hit double-digit sacks, in 2015 (14.5) and 2017 (12). His 14.5-sack season helped Ansah earn a Pro Bowl nod and second-team, All-Pro honors.
With the rotation the Bills run on their defensive line, perhaps playing less snaps could keep Ansah fresher.
WR Rashard Higgins
Age: 25
Perhaps Isaiah McKenzie returning to the Bills on a low-wage deal for one year puts this one in doubt. But Rashard Higgins reportedly peaked the Bills’ attention already this offseason as the team had some level of interest in him.
In 2018, Higgins flashed some promise when he had 39 receptions for 572 yards and four scores. But last season, perhaps because of an MCL sprain Higgins was held to only four catches for 55 yards and a touchdown in 10 games. He also previously had an ACL injury.
In 54 career games, Higgins has 76 catches for 1,016 yards and seven scores. He was a fifth-round pick of the Browns in 2016, and despite his shortcomings, Cleveland.com previously reported that the Browns would be interested in bringing him back for “the right price.” Higgins isn’t an overly big target which the Bills could stand to add, but he’s not a smurf either 6-foot-1, 198 pounds.
RB/ WR Ty Montgomery
Age: 27
They don’t get much more versatile than Ty Montgomery. The running back/ wide receiver would be a Swiss army knife you can bet Buffalo offense coordinator Brian Daboll would do some things with.
Montgomery has jumped around the NFL, but could be a bigger option for the Bills in their backfield to pair with Devin Singletary. Montgomery has a 6-foot, 216 pound frame and is known for getting yards after contact.
The Jets’ ineptitude on offense last season really held him back, but from 2016 to 2018 with the Packers, Montgomery showed his value as both a rusher and receiver. In his career, Montgomery has averaged 3.9 yards per carry with seven rushing scores. He’s added another three scores in the air via 120 catches and 982 receiving yards.
DE Everson Griffen
Age: 32
The Bills really don’t need another aging defensive end, as they now have a few. There’s Jerry Hughes (31) and recently added Mario Addison (32). That’s not to say that those guys can’t play, but Buffalo might consider bringing in another piece that’s more of a prospect that can learn under those two.
But if they want to get really creative with their rotation, could Everson Griffen join Buffalo’s defensive line rotation? Griffen is no longer is his prime, but he made the Pro Bowl just last season, a year he had eight sacks. Plus during his time with the Vikings, he did play under Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier.
Again, bringing in another edge defender might mean the end of Murphy with the Bills. But even with Murphy, another veteran addition could give the Bills a solid rotation.
RB Lamar Miller
Age: 28
The former Dolphins back most recently played for the Texans but the reason Hyde had so much production last year is because of Lamar Miller. He suffered an ACL injury in the preseason and that ended his year and now Miller is testing the free agent market.
Despite that, if Miller can bounce back, he has a history of success. In 2018 he made his first Pro Bowl, averaging 4.6 yards per carry. For his career, Miller’s at a 4.3 average and has found the end zone 32 times, including two seasons of eight rushing scores, plus another two 1,000-yard plus seasons of rushing the ball.
Additionally, the 5-foot-10, 220-pound back would big that bigger complement to Devin Singletary, and he has some hands. Miller has caught at least 25 passes in every season in his career, aside from his rookie campaign.