The Buffalo Bills revamped their secondary prior to the start of the 2017 season, literally replacing every person who played cornerback for the team in 2016. Veteran Shareece Wright was one of those newcomers for 2017, and he was expected to fill a role as a veteran option in dime packages. Due to injuries to starter E.J. Gaines, Wright was pressed into action as a starter, which did not go very well for the club or for Wright.
When forced to play as a starting outside corner, Wright was targeted mercilessly. He actually performed poorly enough that he went from starting three consecutive games (against the Oakland Raiders, New York Jets, and Los Angeles Chargers) to being demoted to the inactive list for the next three weeks. His poor play lands him at number six on our list of the worst salary cap values from 2017.
2017 Cap Hit (per Spotrac): $1,075,000 (.69% of 2017 Cap)
2017 Cap Hit Rank by Position: 81st among cornerbacks
2017 Vital Stats: 12 games, 5 starts (41.06% defensive snaps), 42 tackles, 5 passes defended, 1 interception, 1 fumble forced, 1 fumble recovered
Wright did not make much money, but he was the lone negative in a sea of positives in the defensive secondary. It doesn’t help his cause that his three games as starter nearly perfectly coincided with a horrendous stretch for the team defensively, as E.J. Gaines returning from injury against the Chargers saved Wright from starting the third of three consecutive blowouts. Wright’s poor play and his salary ranking (third among Bills’ corners) makes him a lower value, even if his 81st-ranked salary cap hit nearly matches his low performance rating from Pro Football Focus (82nd among corners with a 69.9, or below-average grade).
Head coach Sean McDermott stopped leaving Wright active on game days, choosing to activate Lafayette Pitts instead, after Wright’s poor performances in three midseason starts. The Bills moved on in the offseason, allowing Wright to sign with the Raiders for 2018.