Buffalo has a wide receiver problem. The team wasn’t exactly stacked at the position before Sammy Watkins was shipped off to Los Angeles. Jordan Matthews sits atop a depth chart that includes rookie Zay Jones and not much else.
Technically, Andre Holmes, Brandon Tate, and Kaelin Clay are wide receivers on the active roster but two of them are special teamers. Walter Powell is doing time on the Reserve/Suspended list and isn’t exactly an established receiver.
With that depressing reality in mind, it is worth noting that the Bills created a pair of openings on the roster by dumping S Trae Elston and LB Jelani Jenkins. It doesn’t seem very likely that the Bills dumped those two players without having a plan of some sort for the two roster spots. One of them is likely to be devoted to defense as the two players were both defenders. Is it too much to hope that the Bills will bring in a WR to fill the other one?
There are numerous free agent WRs milling around. Some of the available guys whose names may be at least somewhat familiar are:
Aaron Dobson
Dobson was out of the league last season after washing out of New England. In his three seasons there he managed only 53 receptions for about 700 yards and four TDs.
Kolby Listenbee
Well, he was drafted by Whaley so that makes him a “no”, right?
Eddie Royal
Royal played in 18 games over the past two seasons for a dreadful Chicago team. While it’s good that his expectation of winning games has already been ground out of him, he had 70 receptions for about 600 yards and 2 touchdownss in those Windy City years.
Victor Cruz
In his 2 seasons playing in New Jersey – which doesn’t count 2015 as he missed that year due to injury – Cruz played in 21 games. He had 62 catches for about 900 yards and 2 touchdowns. He’s not a big receiver but he is experienced.
Vincent Jackson
Jackson played in 15 games over the past two seasons and had 48 catches for about 700 yards and 3 touchdowns. He fits the Panthers mold of a big bodied receiver at 6’5”. He is reportedly waiting for the “right opportunity”, which may mean “someone who will pay me”.
Brandon Reilly
Only Bills fans know who Reilly is as no one else watches Buffalo preseason games. He’s a relatively svelte 200 pounds at 6’2” but he had a knack for coming down with memorable receptions. He knows the offense and is a member of the practice squad.
While Reilly would be the fan favorite option, it is pretty clear that GM Brandon Beane doesn’t much care how fans view his roster moves at this point in his tenure. Jackson would seem to be the wideout who best fits the Anquan Boldin mold, though hopefully without the urge to suddenly retire. Jackson is a possession type WR with a big body and the ability to box out defenders. He is by no means a game breaker at this point in his career but he could be a contributor on an offense that badly needs some contributions from the WR position.