Bills sign 13 players to reserve/future contracts

Full list:

(Update 1/24, 6:30 p.m.): The Bills have also signed QB Shane Buechele to a reserve/future contract:

Previous coverage: 

The Buffalo Bills had inked 11 players to reserve/future contracts earlier this week. Then on Tuesday, two more were added to the bunch.

A reserve/future contract guarantees that a player cannot be signed by another team. The deal goes into effect once the new league year begins and will count towards the next season’s salary cap and 90-man roster for the offseason and training camp.

Of the 13, 11 were on the team’s practice squad during the 2023 season. Two of them, wide receiver KJ Hamler and safety Kendall Williamson, were not.

Here’s the full list of the 13 players the Bills have signed to reserve/future deals:

KJ Hamler signs contract with Buffalo Bills

Former Penn State wide receiver KJ Hamler signs with NFL playoff team.

A day after being eliminated from the NFL postseason, the Buffalo Bills have added a former Penn State wide receiver to their roster. [autotag]KJ Hamler[/autotag] reportedly signed a reserve/futures contract with the Bills on Monday, as reported by Field Yates of ESPN.

A reserve/future contract is a short-term contract for current or practice squad players in the NFL. They are used by teams to keep players under their control with the intent of using them for the next season and players are included on the offseason 90-player limit. This means Hamler will be able to participate in offseason workouts and training camp with the Buffalo Bills, giving him a chance to earn a spot on the team’s active roster next fall.

Hamler was a second-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2020 NFL draft, following a second-team All-Big Ten season with the Nittany Lions in 2019. Hamler dealt with a number of injuries during his three seasons with the Broncos, including a torn ACL in 2021 and a hamstring injury, and a torn pectoral muscle in 2022.

The Broncos waived Hamler in July 2023 and signed with the Indianapolis Colts to be on the practice squad. The Colts chose not to keep Hamler on with a reserve/future contract following the season, leaving him available for the Bills.

Hamler has 42 career receptions for 620 yards and 3 touchdowns in the NFL.

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Ex-Broncos WR KJ Hamler signs reserve/future contract with Bills

Former Broncos WR KJ Hamler has signed a reserve/future contract with the Bills.

KJ Hamler’s NFL journey continues.

The former Denver Broncos wide receiver has signed a reserve/future contract with the Buffalo Bills, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. Hamler will officially join Buffalo’s 90-man offseason roster when the NFL’s new league year begins on March 13.

(Denver previously signed 12 players to reserve/future deals.)

Hamler, 24, was drafted by the Broncos in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft out of Penn State. Hamler battled various injuries during his time in Denver, missing 27 of the team’s 50 games from 2020-2022.

Last summer, the Broncos waived Hamler with a non-football illness designation after he was diagnosed with pericarditis, a heart irritation. The team said Hamler would be a candidate to return after he recovered, but the receiver has not returned to Denver.

After treating his heart irritation, Hamler signed with the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad in late September. He was not elevated to the game-day roster for any games in 2023 and was eligible to sign a reserve/future deal after Indy’s season ended earlier this month.

Hamler will now aim to get his career back on track in Buffalo.

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Colts sign WR Ethan Fernea to the practice squad

Ethan Fernea rejoins the practice squad.

The Indianapolis Colts signed wide receiver Ethan Fernea to the practice squad and placed wide receiver K.J. Hamler on the practice squad injured list, the team announced Friday.

It isn’t clear what type of injury Hamler suffered or how long he will be out.

Fernea is plenty familiar with the Colts. He joined the team as an undrafted free agent rookie in 2022 following the NFL draft and spent most of his rookie season on the practice squad.

He signed a futures contract in January and spent the offseason with the team. Fernea was placed on the Reserve/Injured list in August and was waived with an injury settlement on Aug. 10.

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Ex-Broncos WR KJ Hamler signs with Colts’ practice squad

After treating pericarditis, ex-Broncos WR KJ Hamler has signed with the Colts.

Former Denver Broncos wide receiver KJ Hamler has signed with the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad, according to Colts Wire.

Hamler, 24, was picked by former general manager John Elway in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft out of Penn State. Hamler showed some flashes of potential as a rookie with 30 receptions for 381 yards and three touchdowns, but he then missed all but three games in 2021 with a torn ACL.

The Broncos appeared ready to move on from Hamler when they used a second-round pick to select Oklahoma’s Marvin Mims in April. Mims, like Hamler, is a speedy receiver who can also make an impact on special teams as a returner.

Hamler missed 10 games with injuries last season and he was waived with a non-football illness designation in July after he was diagnosed with pericarditis, a heart irritation. Denver said at the time that Hamler might return after he recovered, but the receiver has landed in Indianapolis instead.

The Broncos are moving forward with Mims as their speedy deep threat. Hamler, meanwhile, will get a fresh start with a new team.

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Colts sign WR KJ Hamler to practice squad, elevate two for Week 4

The Colts made some practice squad moves, including the signing of WR KJ Hamler.

The Indianapolis Colts made some roster moves Saturday ahead of the Week 4 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, including the addition of a former second-round wide receiver to the practice squad.

The Colts also elevated two players from the practice squad to the active roster for the Week 4 matchup and released a cornerback from the practice squad to make room for the new addition at wide receiver.

Here are the roster moves the Colts made Saturday ahead of the Week 4 matchup:

Colts held visit with free-agent WR KJ Hamler

The Colts hosted WR KJ Hamler for a visit Tuesday.

The Indianapolis Colts hosted a visit for free-agent wide receiver KJ Hamler, according to the league’s transaction wire Tuesday.

Hamler, 24, was a second-round pick with the Denver Broncos in the 2020 NFL draft. The Penn State product has dealt with a litany of injuries since entering the NFL, including a torn ACL (2021), a torn pectoral muscle (2023) and two separate hamstring injuries that required stints on the injured reserve list (2020, 2022).

However, the most recent ailment Hamler has dealt with led to his release in July. Hamler was diagnosed with pericarditis, mild heart irritation, and the Broncos waived him with a non-football illness designation.

For what it’s worth, Broncos head coach Sean Payton told the media during training camp that the expected recovery timeline would be roughly one month and then a few more weeks to get Hamler’s conditioning back.

When healthy, Hamler offers depth as a slot receiver, vertical threat and return man on special teams. The Colts currently lack depth in the wide receiver room as they have just four players on the active roster at that position.

In 23 career games (six starts), Hamler has recorded 42 receptions for 620 yards (14.8 YPR) and three touchdowns.

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Ex-Broncos wide receiver KJ Hamler visits Colts

No reunion with the Broncos? Free agent wide receiver KJ Hamler visited the Colts on Tuesday.

Signs seem to indicate that KJ Hamler won’t reunite with the Denver Broncos this season.

The Broncos brought in five players for tryouts on Tuesday — including three wide receivers — and KJ Hamler was not among them.

That’s a notable development because Hamler had a free agent visit with the Indianapolis Colts on Tuesday, according to the NFL’s transaction wire. Hamler visiting a team seemingly indicates that he is healthy and ready to play again.

The Broncos waived Hamler with a non-football illness designation on July 31 after he was diagnosed with pericarditis, a heart irritation. At the time, coach Sean Payton said Hamler would need about a month to treat it and then “another couple of weeks” to get back into football shape.

We are now going on a month and two weeks since the cut and Hamler made his first visit with the Colts. The fact that Denver did not immediately re-sign him (especially with Jerry Jeudy nursing a hamstring injury) seems to suggest that Hamler won’t be returning to the Broncos.

The 24-year-old receiver hauled in 42 receptions for 620 yards and three touchdowns in three seasons in Denver. Hamler was sidelined with various injuries for 27 of the Broncos’ 50 games from 2020-2022.

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Broncos buzz: Injuries damper start of training camp

One and a half weeks in, Broncos training camp has been dampened by injuries.

Broncos Wire will have weekly updates now through the end of training camp on the latest storylines from practice and preseason. This is the third edition. 

WR depth tested: The Broncos had a crowded WR depth chart going into training camp with Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, Marvin Mims and KJ Hamler poised to have key roles in 2023. That depth took a big hit when Denver lost two WRs on the first day of padded practice — Patrick to a non-contact Achilles injury and Hamler to pericarditis, a mild heart irritation. The Broncos waived Hamler with a non-football illness designation, and coach Sean Payton said the WR will need about a month to recover and then a few weeks to get up to football speed. After he recovers, Hamler will be a candidate to re-sign with Denver. Patrick, meanwhile, is set to miss the entire season after being placed on IR. It’s heartbreaking news for Patrick, who also missed the entire 2022 season after tearing his ACL during camp last year.

Rookie watch: Mims will be asked to step up following the losses of Patrick and Hamler. A second-round pick out of Oklahoma, Mims will have an opportunity to win the WR3 job this summer. Mims is a speedy deep threat who could prove to be a perfect fit for QB Russell Wilson‘s signature “moon ball” in 2023.

This post originally appeared in Sports Weekly.

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Broncos Wire podcast: Injuries, Nathaniel Hackett, Hall of Fame and more

On the latest Broncos Wire podcast, Ryan O’Leary and Jon Heath recap the injury updates, Hackett drama, Hall of Fame semifinalists and more.

The Denver Broncos had quite an eventual first week of training camp.

To break down all the news and updates, I joined host Ryan O’Leary on the Broncos Wire podcast to recap and react to the latest developments. You can listen to episode No. 82 below:

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Our unedited notes for this week’s pod can be seen below. 

Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler injuries 
  • Patrick, 29, suffered a non-contact Achilles tear on Monday. He will be placed on IR and miss the entire 2023 season. Patrick also missed the entire 2022 season with a torn ACL. He signed a three-year, $34 million contract extension late in the 2021 season and will now miss 34-straight games. Patrick has a potential out in his contract next spring. If the Broncos bring him back, Patrick will turn 31 during the 2024 season and have a $13 million salary cap hit.
  • Hamler, 24, was diagnosed with pericarditis, which he called a “mild heart irritation.” The Broncos waived him with a non-football illness designation. If they placed him on the reserve/NFI list, Hamler would have been ruled out for the entire 2023 season. Instead, Sean Payton said Hamler will need about a month to recover and then a few weeks to get up to football speed, then Denver might bring him back.
  • Hamler has had awful injury luck since being drafted by the Broncos in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. Hamler has been unavailable for 27 of the team’s 50 games over the last three years.
  • Big-name WRs available include Julio Jones, Jarvis Landry, T.Y. Hilton and Kenny Golladay, but Denver seems more likely to stick with in-house options. Behind Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton, the top candidate to step up and help replace Patrick and Hamler is second-round pick Marvin Mims.
Sean Payton blasts Nathaniel Hackett 
  • Hackett, of course, is now OC for the Jets. New York head coach Robert Saleh stood up for Hackett and said “there’s a lot of crows pecking at our neck.”
  • Jets OL Billy Turner (who played under Hackett with the Packers and with the Broncos last season) called Payton an “[expletive] bum” and “childish” on his Instagram story.
  • Jets QB Aaron Rodgers said the comments were “way out of line” and Rodgers also called Payton “insecure.”
  • Hackett suggested that Payton broke a coaches code and he said “it’s unfortunate that that had to happen.”
  • The damage has clearly been done, though, and the Jets won’t forget those comments. Denver will host New York in Week 5 🍿🏈
Broncos have a new alternate helmet 
  • The Broncos have to wear the alternate helmet with their existing Color Rush uniform, which is all-orange. Some fans wanted the team to wear all-white or white pants with it.
3 former Broncos one step closer to Hall of Fame 
  • Broncos Super Bowl 50 champion DeMarcus Ware will sing the national anthem before the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday and he will then be enshrined in Canton as part of the 2023 class on Saturday.
  • Looking ahead to next year, ex-Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among 12 senior semifinalists for the 2024 Hall of Fame class. Up to three senior candidates will be elected to the 2024 class.
  • Mike Shanahan, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Broncos, is among 12 semifinalists in the coach/contributor category for 2024. Only one coach/contributor will be enshrined with the 2024 class.
  • Late coach Dan Reeves is also a coach/contributor semifinalist for 2024. Reeves reached nine Super Bowls as a player and coach, representing the third-most in NFL history only behind Bill Belichick (12) and Tom Brady (10).
Two quick questions on special teams to wrap things up
  • 1. The NFL has a new rule this year — a fair catch on a kickoff will result in the ball being spotted at the 25-yard line (even if it’s fielded inside the 25). Many coaches don’t like the change, and Sean Payton thinks it will have unintended consequences. The idea is to make the game safer by creating even fewer kickoff returns, a play that is responsible for many injuries every season. Do we think it’s a good rule change?
  • 2. Pat Surtain got a few reps as a punt returner this spring. He’s very willing to contribute on special teams, but the Broncos are only having him practice for emergency-type situations, not as a primary returner. Being such a valuable player, should Surtain even be a fallback option as a returner?
We will return later in the offseason with new podcast episodes as news pops up. If you enjoy this podcast, you can check out previous episodes on Apple PodcastsSpotify or on your podcast service of choice. Please consider giving the podcast a positive rating and review!

You can listen to every past episode below or at this link.

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