The Buffalo Bills’ defensive line has been a point of emphasis during the offseason for several years running, particularly on the edge.
That hasn’t changed in 2022.
At defensive end, the Bills have two of their top pending free agents in Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison.
Hughes is the longest-tenured member of the team. While he only put up two sacks last season, he still consistently pressured opposing quarterbacks. Because of that, Pro Football Focus has ranked him amongst their top-50 upcoming free agents in the NFL, regardless of position.
In 2021, Addison had seven sacks. While not a massive number, it did lead the Bills, a team that is known for rotating their defensive linemen leading to less snaps for starters.
While at the 2022 scouting combine this week, Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane admitted he is interested in potentially getting both players back. It’s still not cut-and-dry by any means.
“My conversation with them is we’ll have to … we’re still working,” Beane said via the Rochester D&C. “What’s our cap situation going to be? What are all the positions we’ve got to answer?”
“We would definitely be open to bringing either one or both of those guys back,” Beane added. “They both can play. I think some guys will want to see where their value is. It’s got to be a fit, whether it’s Jerry or Mario or any of the other guys, it’s got to be a fit for them and a fit for us for how we see their value and what the market says about their value.”
Elaborating a bit on his conversations he’s had with both, Beane did say the pair intends to play next season. And as the GM mentioned, there are some things to figure out.
Currently the Bills are slightly over the 2022 NFL salary cap.
In order to re-sign anyone, the team has to make some moves to find cap space. Not mentioned by Beane is the reality: Age.
Just prior to the start of the 2022 regular season Hughes and Addison will turn 34 and 35, respectively. Pass rushers, especially those in a rotation, can still thrive in their mid-30s.
Regardless, age, like injuries, factors in when considering contracts. It remains to be seen if Buffalo can find a fair price for one or both players this offseason.
It will probably have to be a team-friendly total considering the Bills’ limited cap space.
Not to mention, the Bills have to turn things over to younger players such as Greg Rousseau and others at some point.
Some tough decisions are en route for Beane.
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