With the Buffalo Bills falling short once again of reaching the Super Bowl, they’ve made the move to fire head coach Sean McDermott, and now, league executives are wondering if they may make a splash this offseason to bring in a big-time wide receiver to help quarterback Josh Allen.
Anonymous NFL Personnel Evaluator Speculates a Bills-Eagles Trade
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler posted a roundup of bold predictions he’s collected from what he says are “league executives, coaches and scouts,” and there was one potential move that stuck out: The Bills trading for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown.
This is a landing spot that PFSN’s Alec Elijah also pegged, too. First of all, Brown being on the move this offseason wouldn’t shock anyone. According to “Bleeding Green Nation,” he had numerous trade requests throughout the season, as early as Week 3.
However, the contract is certainly something that has to be addressed. According to Spotrac, Brown still has four years left on his deal. He originally signed a four-year, $100 million deal with the team on April 28, 2022, and then signed a three-year, $96 million extension on April 25, 2024, through 2029.
If he were to be traded before June 1, that would leave the Eagles with $43,448,702 million in dead money. If he were to be traded post-June 1, it would be $16,353,496 in dead money, but also $7,040,000 in cap savings.
Now, if the Eagles wanted to get out of the deal via a cut, they’d have to wait until at least 2027, where it would be $11,706,603 in dead money and $10,966,000 in cap savings with a post-June 1 designation.
Here’s what the NFL personnel evaluator said to Fowler:
“The Bills have to upgrade there — their best receiver is Khalil Shakir, who is a nice player but he’s not a top guy,” the anonymous source said. “Brown is an immediate upgrade and he’s still young [turning 29 in June]. And the Eagles can build the passing game around DeVonta Smith and a high draft pick.”
Right now, the Bills are $11,605,834 over the cap. There are some players they could restructure or part ways with, such as wide receiver Curtis Samuel, who caught just seven passes this past season.
Despite the lack of a wide receiver, the Bills finished third in PFSN’s Offense Impact score with an 86.5, which ranked third in the NFL. In PFSN’s QB Impact score, Allen was also third with a 90.0 score.
If the Bills are unable to land Brown, they’ll be drafting at No. 26 overall, which could be a prime spot for a receiver like KC Concepion or even Denzel Boston.
