Buffalo’s general manager is holding onto the thought that they got their guy.
Buffalo Bills General Manager Brandon Beane answered questions after all of the picks for the 2024 NFL Draft were in and the big takeaway was that the roster isn’t complete, but at the same time, there isn’t enough money at One Bills Drive for him to make any big moves.
“The cap is the cap,” Beane said that he knows the Bills are linked to a bundle of trade rumors, but they are nothing more than just that — rumors. “If you’re expecting something big or anything like that — there’s no trade coming.”
While the Bills will have another $10 million available in June, thanks to a post-June 1 release of former All-Pro cornerback Tre’Davious White, the Beane said that that money is already marked. Between draft picks, undrafted free agents, and practice squad players, Beane said that most of that money will be gone and that he likes to hold $4 million back in case he needs to go get someone mid-season to fill any vacancies that come due to injuries.
Beane referenced the larger number of practice squad players that the league allows teams to carry now, saying that that eats up more of the cap money than in seasons pre-2020.
“Can we do a little bit? Yes,” he said, adding a spark of hope for members of Bills Mafia who were underwhelmed by the draft picks chosen. “Listen, if there’s an opportunity to add someone that makes sense, yes, we would do that.”
Contradictory? Probably. Welcome to the business side of football. More specifically, welcome to Buffalo Bills football.
Beane also took a few minutes to discuss some of this year’s draft pics.
- RB Ray Davis — “He’s a dog. He’s a tough kid. You watch his film, like he just plays the game violent. He’ll add just an edge to the group.”
- OL Sedrick Van Pran-Grainger — “(We) went down and spent some time with him, worked him out and came back feeling like this guy’s got what we want. He’s mainly played center but has some reps at guard, so it’s added competition over there. A young guy that maybe in the future is a guy that could start or at least be a functional starter.”
- OL Travis Clayton – “We sent R.J. Webb, who’s one of our Pro Scouts, down to the workout at South Florida. He was like, ‘man this guy’s athletic.’ I’ve never seen him really, truly play football but his measurables are wowing, off the page. It gives us an international body, which also gives us an extra guy for camp. Obviously raw, but his workout was impressive.”
- CB Daequan Hardy — “We really liked his return skill, and then he can compete as a back and corner.”
Beane said to keep in mind that the 2024 Buffalo Bills are a team in transition, and that he will keep adding pieces between now and training camp — whether that be in the form of veteran players who get displaced due to rookie signings across the league or in the form of undrafted free agents.
“We want to have an edge in as many areas as we can, but we also want leaders — smart, tough dependable guys,” Beane said. “We have some that are already on the roster that will have their opportunity to step up, but adding some guys with edge behind these future leaders of the team is our focus.”
It is obvious that Buffalo is all-in on a youth movement for their 2024 roster and that smart, scrappy players are what Beane is looking to move the Bills forward.
You can watch his full, 30-minute media session here: