Safety (4)
Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Jaquan Johnson, Siran Neal
Cuts: Dean Marlowe, Garrett Taylor, Josh Thomas
You already knew Neal was coming… and Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer. But this final safety spot is up for grabs. Dean Marlowe is has been more of the No. 3 safety in recent years. If Hyde and Poyer, who rarely miss time, do, it’s Marlowe’s spot to step up. But Jaquan Johnson has been in the building for multiple seasons now. Marlowe had previous experience playing in Sean McDermott’s defense from his time with the Panthers, possibly giving him and edge on the competition. But perhaps Johnson has caught up enough to take over these duties while also pitching in on special teams.
That’s a depth camp battle to watch, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see us wrong about Johnson over Marlowe.
Specialists (3)
Tyler Bass, Corey Bojorquez, Reid Ferguson
Cuts: Kaare Vedvik, Stephen Hauschka
Tyler Bass being drafted by the Bills was certainly a surprise and appears like it will mark the end of Stephen Hauschka’s time in Buffalo. His dead cap hit drops to $1.25M this offseason and in most cases a drafted kicker just has a leg-up (pun intended). Unfortunately since Hauskchka was blind-sided by the Jets’ Henry Anderson, he’s been up-and-down. Still, don’t fully count him out just yet. Also no preseason games for Bass could be a factor, too.
Kaare Vedvik and Corey Borjorquez are pretty intriguing. Both bring something unique to the table. Borjorquez? He’s a lefty kick. Yes, that matters, the ball spins differently to returners. Vedvik? The Norwegian is actually a place kicker, too. McDermott will love that. But we’ll keep Borjorquez for now.
Reid Ferguson? Reid Ferguson.
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