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Following their 27-10 divisional round loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the playoffs, the Buffalo Bills' off-season has begun and they can focus on building their roster for the 2023 season.
The first and one of the most important events of the off-season is free agency and heading into it, the Bills aren't in a good position to be in.
According to spotrac.com, the Bills rank 25th in cap space, being -$15.9 under the cap. That isn't good because they'll have to re-work some players' contracts on the team just to get under the cap, and may have to resort to cutting some players.
Their top five highest-paid players (quarterback Josh Allen, edge rusher Von Miller, receiver Stefon Diggs, cornerback Tre’Davious White and left tackle Dion Dawkins) all account for $109.7 million toward the team's cap.
General manager Brandon Beane knows that he's in a tough position heading into free agency. When asked about his chances of keeping Jordan Poyer and Tremaine Edmunds, he said he doesn't know but he'll do his best to assemble the best roster that he can.
Beane said:
"I got no idea. Would love to keep them all, and we’ll do our best... We’re going to have to be creative... We’re going to put as strong a team as we can out there. We may have to rework a few contracts. It’s not like we’re not going to do that,” But I also don’t want to in two years be $100 million over the cap like we’ve seen teams.”
The team has many key players who are free agents. Among them are safety Jordan Poyer, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, defensive end Jordan Phillips, running back Devin Singletary, guard Roger Saffold, tackle David Quessenberry, and many others.
Tremaine Edmunds and Jordan Poyer headlines many Buffalo Bills players they could lose in free agency
The Bills will have to make some difficult decisions to make in free agency and lose a few key players due to their cap situation.
Star defensive players like Tremaine Edmunds and Jordan Poyer are likely to strike big on the market and sign elsewhere. Beane didn't sound too confident about retaining them when asked about it by the media.
The team could also lose running back Devin Singletary as they drafted James Cook in last year's draft who had a more productive season later on.
The Bills might also let veterans such as wide receiver Jamison Crowder, defensive linemen Carl Lawson & Jordan Phillips walk into free agency as they look to improve their roster in a cheaper way which can be done throughout the draft.
A lot can happen now until the start of free agency such as re-worked contracts, trades, cuts, etc. The team could end up keeping a lot of their key guys or they could lose a majority of them.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Brandon Beane, romesentinel.com, and H/T Sportskeeda
