Three offseason moves the Bills must make
Carolina Panthers wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr.
With the 2024 NFL Draft officially behind us, most teams are done making high-profile acquisitions and are busy rounding out their rosters in preparation for training camp.
It’s unlikely that the Buffalo Bills can pull off any blockbuster deals this offseason since they have the third-fewest cap space in the NFL, but here are three moves they should make to shore up their roster.
Trade for Panthers wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr.
Buffalo’s receiving corps will look significantly different in 2024 compared to last season following the departures of Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis. Although the Bills added Keon Coleman, Curtis Samuel and a few smaller signings, including Chase Claypool and Mack Hollins, they have nothing to lose by investing in more depth at wideout.
Marshall, a 2021 second-round pick, is probably available since he was granted permission to seek a trade from the Panthers last season.
A notable connection to one Bills staffer makes Marshall an intriguing fit for the team, as he played for OC Joe Brady at LSU and during his rookie season with Carolina. While he only had 17 receptions for 138 yards as a rookie, Marshall was a key member of LSU’s 2019 national championship-winning team.
That season, Marshall caught 46 passes for 671 yards and 13 touchdowns as the third receiving option behind current NFL superstars Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase.
Since the Bills own two sixth-round picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, trading one of the selections for Marshall could be a worthwhile low-risk, high-reward move. Chances are Marshall will never develop into a Pro Bowl-caliber wideout, but his career could finally take off if he gets an opportunity to catch passes from Bills QB Josh Allen.
Sign edge-rusher Markus Golden
The Bills don’t need to add a starting caliber edge-rusher since they’re hoping A.J. Epenesa takes the next step in an expanded role, but the team should consider adding more depth at the position. Buffalo lost its sack leader from last season, Leonard Floyd, to the 49ers in free agency, and Von Miller remains a massive question mark, considering he made just three tackles in 2023.
Like most position groups at this stage in the offseason, the edge-rushers still available don’t offer much upside. However, over his nine seasons in the NFL, Golden has proven he can be a productive member of any team’s defense, and he could be an ideal target for Buffalo’s relatively young unit.
Golden, a 68-game career starter, racked up four sacks during the 2023 regular season in a part-time role for the Steelers and also notched a sack against Buffalo in the wild-card round.
It’s hard to imagine Golden would get anything more than a one-year deal worth the veteran minimum, and at that price, Buffalo should at least bring him in for training camp.
Extend cornerback Rasul Douglas
While there’s always increased risk involved in extending a player entering their 30s, especially at the cornerback position, Douglas showed enough promise in his short stint with the Bills to warrant a new deal.
Buffalo sent a 2024 third-round pick to the Packers in exchange for Douglas and a 2024 fifth-round draft choice at last season’s trade deadline to fill the void left by the then-injured Tre’Davious White. In nine games with the Bills, Douglas collected 29 tackles, one sack, eight pass breakups and four interceptions, which were the most on the team.
Despite his impressive results with Buffalo being such a small sample size, Douglas has solidified himself as one of the top ball-hawking cornerbacks in the NFL in recent years.
Over the last three seasons, Dallas’ Trevon Diggs is the only player with more interceptions than Douglas, who has 14 in that span. With Buffalo set to gain $10.2M in cap space on June 1 after releasing White earlier this offseason, it would be wise to spend some of that money on an extension for Douglas.
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