The Buffalo Bills have 12 unrestricted free agents inching their way toward free agency which opens on March 18. On March 16, the Bills can start negotiating with other team’s players and then two days later, the club can officially ink players to deals (although, reports of signings will start on the 16).
On the flip, the Bills’ pending free agents can do the same and sign with another franchise. With the clock ticking, the Bills still have a chance to sign their own free agents to contracts, and might even do so after the market opens.
Bills Wire will do a 12-part rundown of each of Buffalo’s pending free agents leading up to the “tampering period.”
Here’s the free agent profile for Bills free agent defensive end Shaq Lawson:
Stats
2019: 15 games played, 32 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, 2 passes defended, 1 forced fumble
Bills: 50 games played, 108 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, 10 passes defended, 5 forced fumbles
Career: 50 games played, 108 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, 10 passes defended, 5 forced fumbles
How acquired
2016 NFL Draft, Round 1, pick 19
Previous contract
Four-year, $10.2 million rookie deal (current age: 25)
Breakdown
Shaq Lawson featured in the pretty deep rotation the Bills played in Sean McDermott’s defense last year along the defensive line. He had a strong year, the best in his career. Lawson saw a carer-high number of sacks (6.5), tackles for loss (13), and playing time with 483 total, but that’s just under half of the team’s defensive snaps played in 2019.
Lawson is a free agent because the Bills decided not to pick up the fifth-year option on his contract, thinking he’s not worth that heavy price tag. The 25-year-old said not getting his option picked up was a big motivating factor for him, but he’s not slighting Buffalo. He said he’d be open to returning at the team’s locker cleanout day after the season ended.
What are the Bills’ options?
Lawson and Jordan Phillips have very similar circumstances and you can put Lawson into the category of letting him hit the market. Although by comparison, one could think that there’s a better chance of the Bills trying to come to a deal with Lawson before free agency open, rather than Phillips, who’s definitely going to hit the market.
What should they do?
While the Bills could use their first-round pick on a pass rusher, consider this a post about the Bills retaining Lawson. At only 25, he’s entering the prime of his career and had a solid season. Jerry Hughes will be back, but he’s turning 32, so the Bills need to keep some youth around. Lawson’s 6.5 sacks isn’t overly impressive, but Lawson is trending in the right direction and has been known for his stout run defense. If the Bills do want room for a top pass rusher, pairing Lawson with a first rounder and cutting Trent Murphy to make room could be a better option.
Of course, this all comes down to dollars and cents. Spotrac projects Lawson’s next contract at a yearly salary of $7.6 million. That seems about right as Lawson’s rookie fifth-year option would’ve been around $9.1 million. If the Bills can keep it under $8 million, Lawson could me a profitable signing to keep around. But if it gets higher, that money could be put toward a free agent addition instead.
[lawrence-related id=56386,56302,56396,56413]