The Buffalo Bills will reshape their roster this offseason now that Sean McDermott is out and Joe Brady has been promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach. A new defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, is in the building, too, and that will lead to change as well. Who is on the chopping block in Buffalo? Here are 3 Bills cut candidates entering the 2026 offseason.
Letting free agents walk will likely be the biggest factor in the Bills’ roster transition this offseason. The chances that longtime stalwarts and big names like Matt Milano, Jordan Poyer, Tre’Davious White, Joey Bosa, and A.J. Epenesa return are slim to none.
There is a good chance that others, like Daquon Jones, Conner McGovern, David Edwards, Damar Hamlin, Cam Lewis, Shaq Thompson, Larry Ogunjobi, and Jordan Phillips, are gone as well.
Despite all these players possibly being out, the Bills enter the 2026 NFL offseason around $9 million over the salary cap. That means the general manager, Brandon Beane, will have to jettison some players who are currently under contract, including these three Bills cut candidates.
WR Curtis Samuel
Wide receiver Curtis Samule was hailed as a Swiss Army knife player who could play multiple WR spots and line up nearly anywhere in the formation when he signed with Buffalo ahead of the 2024 season. He was also a player that Beane and McDermott apparently loved since their time with him in Carolina.
That simply never materialized with Samuel. He missed significant time with injuries in 2025 and simply made nearly no impact in his 20 games played with the team. His final stat line in two years was 38 receptions for 338 yards and two touchdowns.
Those numbers just do not justify bringing him back in 2026 with a $9.5 million cap hit. Cutting Samuel would save the Bills a little over $6 million next season.
K Tyler Bass
Kicker Tyler Bass is another player who missed a lot of time this season. In fact, he missed the entire 2025 campaign with hip and groin injuries. The team got by fine without him, so keeping him on a $4.9 million contract next season makes no sense.
And frankly, Bass was a middling kicker at best who either Beane or McDermott seemed overly loyal to for a few years now. He missed the biggest kick of his career in the 2023 Divisional Round against the Kansas City Chiefs and is a career 84.5% field goal kicker. With that percentage, he would have ranked 23rd in the NFL last season.
Bass is way too expensive for what he brings to the team, so saving $2.9 million makes him not just a Bills cut candidate, but a player they must let go this offseason.
S Taylor Rapp
Taylor Rapp is a fine player who is talented enough to make the Bills roster next season. However, he played only six games last year, and with a $3.1 million cap savings if the Bills cut him, it makes a lot of sense to move on.
If Buffalo does cut Rapp, they do need to find another safety to play next to Cole Bishop, who was one of the breakout stars of last year’s team. Poyer, Hamlin, and Darnell Savage are free agents, while Wande Owens and Daryl Porter are not starting-caliber players.
New DC Jim Leonhard was a safety during his playing career, so look for him to give some special attention to that position and replace Rapp, Poyer, and Hamiln with players more to his liking.
