The Buffalo Bills reportedly made a move at defensive end on Friday, releasing veteran Ryan Davis. That according to Pro Football Weekly’s Eric Edholm.
Davis signed with the Bills as a free agent last season after playing for the Dallas Cowboys in 2016. Previously, he played for the Jacksonville Jaguars, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2012.
Davis enjoyed arguably his best season as a professional in 2017, as he combined for a career-high 28 tackles over the course of sixteen games. He also had 3 sacks and a forced fumble. He played on 457 defensive snaps (41.25%), and he also contributed 118 special teams snaps (27%).
The Bills save $1.225 million on the salary cap (or about $670,000 when the next veteran minimum salary enters the Top-51 to replace him). He has a dead cap figure of $50,000 thanks to the small signing bonus he signed last year.
The Bills signed Trent Murphy, formerly of the Washington Redskins, to a three-year contract worth $22.5 million early in the free agent period. It appears that the Bills are ready to roll with Murphy and incumbent starter Jerry Hughes as the top two defensive ends. Shaq Lawson and Eddie Yarbrough currently project as the team’s top backup options in the wake of Davis’ release. Many thought it might be Hughes or the former first rounder Lawson caught in the numbers game, but it appears it’s Davis.