90 Buffalo Bills players in 90 days: S Zayne Anderson

The Buffalo Bills have a deep secondary group, one with plenty of players whose skill sets vary. They have been able to find some underappreciated players in the defensive secondary over the last few years, taking other teams’ cast-aways and their own late-round draft choices and turning them into successful players.

In today’s installment of “90 players in 90 days,” we discuss a 2023 free-agent addition who spent the last two years with a conference rival.

Name: Zayne Anderson

Number: 38

Position: S

Height/Weight: 6’2”, 206 pounds

Age: 26 (27 on 1/3/2023)

Experience/Draft: 1; signed with the Kansas City Chiefs following the 2021 NFL Draft

College: BYU

Acquired: Signed with Buffalo on 2/17/2023

Financial situation (per Spotrac): Anderson signed a two-year contract with the Bills this winter, a pact worth $1.995 million overall. Of that total, just $10,000 is guaranteed, and that represents the dead-cap number Buffalo will be charged if they cut Anderson. If he makes the final roster, he carries a cap hit this year of $945,000.

2022 Recap: Anderson spent the offseason with the Chiefs. He appeared in two preseason games with the club, totaling six tackles. He was waived as part of the team’s final cuts at the end of August, but he went unclaimed and re-signed with the team’s practice squad shortly thereafter. He remained on the practice squad for the duration of the season, and he was elevated for three games. He did not record a tackle across 48 special teams snaps. For his career, Anderson has appeared in seven games, but he has yet to play a regular-season snap on defense. He has one total tackle.

Positional outlook: Anderson is one of seven safeties on the current roster, joining Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Taylor Rapp, Damar Hamlin, Dean Marlowe, and Jared Mayden.

2023 Offseason: Anderson was at OTAs in May, but he didn’t participate. He was at the team’s mandatory minicamp, as well, and while there wasn’t any official notice that I found about his participation, we were all a little preoccupied with someone else’s participation — or lack thereof — so it makes sense. I think I spotted Anderson in a picture from Day 1 on the team’s website, so I believe he was able to participate this time around.

2023 Season outlook: Anderson seems more like a practice-squad candidate than he does a serious contender for a roster spot, as the Bills are five-deep with players who have game experience at the position. Hyde and Poyer are locks, and Rapp, Hamlin, and Marlowe all have a better chance at making the final roster than Anderson does, as they can all play special teams and defense. Look for the Bills to re-sign him after final cut-downs for a spot on the practice squad.