The Buffalo Bills made sweeping changes to their roster before the start of free agency. In the span of a few hours, the Bills cut six veterans and re-signed several players.
However, when it comes to defensive tackle DaQuan Jones, one of Buffalo’s most important pending free agents, it’s crickets. Jones checked in with Bills Mafia on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday, March 8. “Twitter world! How we feeling !? I’ve been M.I.A I know missed ya too,” Jones posted. Fans immediately flooded the post with comments, hoping for an announcement that he’s re-signing with Buffalo.
However, the 32-year-old appears to be in the dark when it comes to his contract status.
“Twitter fam, you know what I know so idk what to tell you haha,” Jones posted. Bills Mafia strongly reacted to Jones’ comment. Cover 1’s Adam Pensel posted, “It is very strange to me that he appears to have not had conversations with the Bills yet. I wonder what their plan is at DT.”
One fan wrote, “Guys… I’m getting worried Beane’s not bringing him back.” The veteran’s $14 million contract expired after the 2023 NFL season. According to Spotrac.com, his market value demands an affordable one-year, $6.8 million deal. While Jones missed most of the season with a pectoral tear, he was a force before getting injured. Jones earned an impressive 90.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus for his performance throughout the first four games of the season, recording 2.5 sacks and 6.0 tackles.
The Bills’ defense will look drastically different next season after releasing Jordan Poyer, Siran Neal, and Tre’Davious White. While Buffalo is working toward rebuilding with a younger roster, bringing Jones back should remain a priority. The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia wrote on Friday, “Jones is the perfect blend of being an essential defensive piece to the Bills in 2024 while still being cost-effective.
“Jones is 32 and coming off a long-term injury, which should drive his price down. He thrived in the Bills’ defensive scheme, and knowing how well it worked last year, it could set him up for another chance to get paid next offseason. Of all the re-signing options, Jones is easily the most important for next season. The defensive tackles room is bare without a starting option at one technique. And by all of the Bills’ roster chopping, they don’t need to use any void years to get this done.”
Amid the flurry of moves on Wednesday, which included releasing Mitch Morse, Deonty Harty, and, Deonty Harty, the Bills cleared over $30 million in cap space. Buffalo entered the offseason $43.3 million over the $255.4 million cap limit. After re-signing Matt Hack, Taylor Rapp, and David Edwards, bringing back Mitch Trubisky, and restructuring Von Miller and Rasul Douglas’ contracts, the Bills are $12.8 million over the cap. By restructuring quarterback Josh Allen‘s contract, the Bills can clear approximately $23 million in cap space. In order to fill gaping roster holes in free agency and clear funds for the 2024 NFL draft, general manager Brandon Beane still has some work to do.
