Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - As the Buffalo Bills look towards free agency and the NFL Draft, my 2023 "State of the Bills" position-by-position series continues.
Here’s a look at the linebackers:
Under contract:
- Matt Milano
- Terrel Bernard
- Baylon Spector
Pending Free Agents:
- Tremaine Edmunds
- A.J. Klein
- Tyler Matakevich
- Tyrel Dodson (RFA)
State of the position:
The big question here is, what happens with Edmunds?
As free agency inches closer, reports are surfacing that Edmunds could make upwards of $15 million per-year on the open market. Are the Bills willing to go that high? Even if they are, does Edmunds want to test the open market and max out if he can?
The 24-year-old linebacker had his best season as a pro last year, and just at the right time, hitting free agency at such a young age and bright future.
Edmunds can be the poster child for what general manager Brandon Beane has always preached they want to do. Draft, develop, and retain. Two of those three have happened, but it’s going to be tough to retain his services at that price, especially with the salary cap situation the team is in right now.
It’s possible for the Bills to re-sign Edmunds to a hefty price, but keep his cap hit lower. Because of his age, they could spread the contract out over five or even six years, paying bonus money upfront, allowing the cap hit to spread out each year.
We will see, and know how this plays out very soon.
If Edmunds does leave, Bernard could step into that role next season.
The Bills drafted him in the third round last year, surprisingly to many. He had a terrific training camp and preseason, but struggled in his one start against the New York Jets. However, he started that game for Milano and not Edmunds.
It looks like Bernard will have a good future, but is he ready for that type of role yet?
If he doesn’t start, Bernard will be a primary backup and core special teams player, just as he was last year when he played 62% of those snaps.
Milano has been terrific throughout his six seasons in a Bills uniform, but was finally recognized for his outstanding play by being named an AP First-Team All Pro.
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He signed a four-year contract extension prior to 2020, and still has two years remaining at a cap hit of just over $13 million each season. It’s a good value for a top player at his position in the league.
That said, the Bills could try to lower that 2023 cap number even more with either a contract restructure or even an extension.
On top of his two years remaining, Milano also has two more void years after that. That means the team will be charged money on the salary cap in 2025 and 2026, but Milano is not under contract those years. It was done that way to already spread out his bonus money and cap hit over extra years.
They could sign him to an extension and put him under contract for those years, then add two more void years after that, lower his base salary and give him another signing bonus, spreading the cap hit out once again.
Either way, they are in a good position with an excellent player for multiple more years.
Spector saw action in six games last season after the making the team as a seventh-round draft choice. However, only one of those games he played any snaps at all on defense. The rest were only on special teams, where he most likely will have to prove he can contribute again while fighting for a job at training camp.
Dodson will be a restricted free agent this offseason.
He's been a very valuable backup for the club for three seasons, starting five games over that span and playing in every contest over the past two years. However, in order for the Bills to retain his rights, they'll have to offer him the minimum RFA tender, which is for one-year, $2.627 million.
It's unlikely the team will do that, which would then make Dodson an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any club. They could also work out a different deal with him for one or even multiple years, keeping him in Buffalo at a lower rate.
After being released last offseason, Klein returned to Buffalo, re-signing with the Bills in November. He played in six regular season games and both playoff contests, seeing action on defense in two of those and the rest on special teams.
Klein is more of a matchup-type linebacker the Bills like to use when facing a heavier, more run-oriented team. He has been useful in those situations.
He's going to be 32-years-old and an unrestricted free agent this offseason. The Bills will most likely want to get younger and cheaper for a player like that, but considering how well he knows the system and that there probably won't be a huge market for him, it's not out of the question he comes back to fill the same role, even if not re-signed right away.
TMatakevich has led the Bills in special teams snaps each of the past three seasons, logging almost 80% each year since signing as an undrafted free agent before 2020.
He just turned 30-years-old and can still be that same player for them, or someone else. He will be an unrestricted free agent and get a chance to see how much that's worth on the open market.
Unless another team makes a significant offer, a return to Buffalo is certainly not out of the question.
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