Murphy and the D-line
Trent Murphy made the Bills’ final roster. That was a debated scenario that saw two sides of the coin. In cutting Murphy, the Bills would have added $8 million in salary cap space. The thought for many was that the team could do so, hang onto that space, allow it to rollover into 2021’s salary cap, which could help Buffalo re-sign players like linebacker Matt Milano or just help with future free agency deals.
But that’s not what the team opted for. Instead, Murphy stuck around. We still have an added surprise here. In keeping Murphy, the Bills kept five defensive ends on their roster, bringing their entire defensive lineman total to nine. The more typical amount kept we’ve seen from McDermott out of training camp is eight. That “ninth player” is Darryl Johnson.
Furthering the surprise, we have Quinton Jefferson. The former Seahawk was a veteran free agency addition this offseason and can play both the inside and outside of the defensive line, so maybe Buffalo could have even got away with keeping just seven on the D-line? Evidently the Bills felt like Johnson has too much talent to place him on the wavier wire.
In a way, keeping Murphy shows the Bills are all-in on 2020 as well. His contract is up after this season, so that made cutting him all the more intriguing of an idea. Instead, Buffalo said forget those future finances and let’s try to win in 2020.