After the season that he had which culminated in a 2017 Pro Bowl selection, opinions are bound to be split on Buffalo Bills defender Lorenzo Alexander in terms of whether or not the soon-to-be free agent should re-signed. For Alexander though, there’s most likely only one opinion on this matter that he cares about: the one of his agent, Peter Schaffer. Per, CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora, Schaffer believes that his client can fetch between $5 and $10 million on the free-agent market this offseason.
On one hand, Alexander, who can play defensive end or outside linebacker, was the Bills best pass-rusher last season leading the team with 12.5 sacks, putting him in a tie for the third highest total across the league. But as great as he was in 2016, his performance was an anomaly. Prior to last season, the veteran had mostly been used on special teams and had only managed to rack up nine sacks for his career, which began in 2007. The Bills signed him ahead of 2016 with intentions of using in the same fashion until they suffered a massive blow to their defense in training camp, when projected starter Reggie Ragland blew out his knee.
La Canfora thinks “the prospects for Alexander should be ripe,” naming the Washington Redskins, San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns as possible landing spots. He says Washington and San Francisco are in need of someone with his skill set, and projects Cleveland as a fit because of Alexander’s ties to defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who Alexander played for in his rookie year in Washington. Oddly enough, La Canfora, fails to address the very real possibility that Alexander could return to the Bills in free agency.
No doubt Alexander has earned the right to be paid but the bottom line is this: While Alexander’s believed free-agent worth may not be much at all, it’s not necessarily fiscally responsible for Buffalo to spend that kind of money on a player that you are not sure can have continued success. Alexander will be 34-year-old when the 2017 season starts, and besides the fact that he’s an inexperienced starting defensive player, he might not even be a fit in new head coach Sean McDermott and new defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier’s scheme — which will most likely transform the Bills from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3.
Either way, in a supposedly weak free agent class, expect Alexander to at least receive his alleged floor price.