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 linebacker Julian Stanford:
Stats
2019: 16 games played, 8 tackles
Bills: 29 games played, 23 tackles, 1 pass defended
Career: 88 games played, 92 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass defended
How acquired
Signed via free agency, March 2018
Previous contract
Two-year, $3 million (current age: 29)
Breakdown
Julian Stanford has spent nearly all of his Bills career as a key special teamer. In Heath Farwell’s first year as the team’s coordinator, the team improved on that side of the ball, mostly just getting out of the bottom of the barrel in terms of performance.
But Stanford did fill in for starting middle linebacker Tremaine Edmunds on one occasion, recording eight tackles and forcing a fumble in Week 9 of the 2018 season against the Bears. In 2019 he didn’t get a start, but he did have a team-high 273 special teams snaps.
What are the Bills’ options?
The Bills could look to get younger on their special teams unit, but Stanford isn’t old, old. Clearly the Bills have faith in his abilities as a special teamer, based on his snaps. Could they trust a rookie with that type of role?
What should they do?
While perhaps being tough on some of the Bills’ other veteran, backup free agents, the Bills should look to keep Stanford around. He has limited experience filling in for Edmunds, but did so admirably. In addition, Farwell trusts him on his special teams unit. Don’t get cute here, bring him back on a deal that’s probably pretty cost efficient.
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