A few days ago, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport made some waves among Buffalo Bills fans by noting that he felt the team was likely going to retain quarterback Tyrod Taylor. In another video Thursday, Rapoport elaborated on that thought, saying the relationship between the Bills and Taylor has “warmed up a little bit over the last couple weeks.”
Specifically, Rapoport mentioned the videos of Taylor rehabbing at a team facility as a sign that the team and the player might be on the same page. He also mentioned that the surgery is a moot point now, given the recent news that Taylor has been medically cleared by team doctors and would likely be able to pass a physical if he were to be released.
Rapoport also reiterates the possibility of the Bills and Taylor restructuring the contract to lower the $27.5 million salary that he’s set to earn on March 12. While Taylor has made it clear that he’s not willing to take a pay cut, the possibility that he works with the team to adjust the roster bonus payout and cap hits seems to be on the table. Per Spotrac, the cap hit on Taylor’s contract as it stands is just south of $16 million. It doesn’t fluctuate very much over the life of the deal, finishing out at $17.65 million in 2021. That leaves plenty of room for the Bills to kick some of his salary down the road (which would likely come at the cost of a higher portion of the salary guaranteed) as one of the moves they could make to address their lack of cap space this offseason.
We have 16 days to go until the deadline hits. With each day that passes, it seems like the odds of Taylor remaining with the Bills increases (and they’re already pretty good). As always, stay tuned.