4 free agents the Buffalo Bills can sign to finally break through for Super Bowl
By Mark Powell
The Buffalo Bills have very little money to spend and a veteran-laden roster, but they must get better this offseason. Despite facing Patrick Mahomes in Buffalo for the first time in a playoff game, the Bills still came up just short thanks to a Tyler Bass missed field goal and just enough Mahomes magic to send the Chiefs to the AFC Championship Game.
It was an exceptionally painful loss for Buffalo, which finally assumed it was their year following a late-season run to win the AFC East and secure the No. 2 seed in the conference.
The Chiefs are a buzzsaw, and unfortunately aren't going anywhere. Whether Kansas City wins the Super Bowl this season or not, the Bills must make marginal improvements to beat them. Some of that will come in the form of addition by subtraction. Safety Micah Hyde, defensive tackle DaQuan Jones, pass-rusher A.J. Epenesa and wideout Gabe Davis are all veteran free agents and could leave, thus saving the Bills a lot of money in the process. Buffalo could also release Mitch Morse, Jordan Pyer or Nyheim Hines just to create enough cap room to improve the roster some.
With Sean McDermott likely returning despite some fans and pundits insisting he is the wrong man for the job, Buffalo will ratchet up the pressure before their window closes altogether. Signing these four free agents would be a good start.
4. Bills should find a way to keep Micah Hyde
Micah Hyde is entering the final years of his professional football career. At 33 years old, Hyde won't demand the same contract he would if he were five years younger. The safety market is loaded with talent the Bills cannot afford even if they let Hyde and the others mentioned above walk. Their best bet would be sitting in a room with Hyde and convincing him that their system allows him the best chance at success, and a potential Super Bowl.
Whether that would be enough for a player who has just been through three postseason defeats to the Chiefs in four years remains to be seen, but it's worth a shot. Hyde admitted that he doesn't know what the future hold following Buffalo's loss to KC on Sunday.
“Every, you wake up the next day and you’re filled with so much frustration because you weren’t able to get it done,” Hyde said, via Mark Gaughan of the Buffalo News. “This morning I woke up and I’m like, ‘Wow, that was a run. That was an amazing run we went on.’ I’m forever grateful for this team, the hard work and the resilience this team has showed. I just have no idea what the future holds right now. I’m going to sit down, maybe in a couple weeks or something, and talk to the wife and talk to the family. But we’ll see. I’m in no rush, no rush at all.”
Keeping Hyde around is a top priority for Buffalo, and he's worth a multiyear offer if that's what it takes. Hopefully, the Bills can keep him around on a short-term deal with a generous AAV.