The Bills selected Hardy in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 219th overall.
The Bills targeted an interesting project at cornerback with the Hardy selection. Hardy never carved out a starting job at Penn State and will turn 23 in June, but he also played 48 games in Happy Valley. He's small at 5-foot-9 and 179 pounds, meaning he'll work exclusively out of the slot. At the same time, he has 4.38 speed and had a 42.5-inch vertical at the combine. Hardy also had two punt return touchdowns in 2023, which takes the sting out of the Bills losing Deonte Harty this offseason.
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Bills' DeWayne Carter: Lands with Buffalo
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The Bills selected Carter in the third round of the NFL Draft, 95th overall.
Buffalo needed a youth infusion in the middle of the defense coming into the draft, and Carter provides that. A Duke product, Carter was a decorated player during his time in Durham, earning third-, second-, and first-team All-ACC honors. He is a squat defensive tackle that is hard to move at 6-foot-2 and 302 pounds who fires off the ball. His most disruptive season came in 2022, when he had 11.0 tackles for loss, including 5.5 sacks. and while his statistics fell off a bit in 2023, he still put together a strong season. He projects to be the heir apparent to DaQuan Jones alongside Ed Oliver.
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Bills' Rasul Douglas: Key acquisition in 2023
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Douglas posted 61 tackles, 1.0 sacks, 14 passes defensed, five interceptions, a pick-six and three fumble recoveries over 16 regular-season games in 2023 split between the Packers and Bills.
Buffalo acquired Douglas from Green Bay in a Halloween trade, and the veteran played a key role in helping the Bills turn around their season and win a fourth straight AFC East title. With Buffalo losing several key pieces this offseason, Douglas will remain a clear-cut starter in the secondary and locker room leader entering his eighth NFL season. He's had four-plus picks in each of the last three seasons.
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Bills' Greg Rousseau: Ready for next step?
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Rousseau completed the 2023 regular season with 42 tackles (including 5.0 sacks), four passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
Rousseau saw a career-high snaps on defense (558), so perhaps it's a bit disappointing that he fell eight tackles short of his rookie season and 3.0 sacks short of the career-high 8.0 he posted in 2022. With the playoff perennial Bills facing so much turnover on both sides of the ball, the 2021 first-rounder may be expected to hit another gear if the team is to take a fifth straight AFC East title. A.J. Epenesa has already proven capable of helping Rousseau with the pass rush on the other side of the line, but everyone could gain if Von Miller, who's missed significant time the past two seasons, can consistently spark the pass rush.
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Bills' Ed Oliver: Coming off best season
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Oliver finished the 2023 regular season with 51 tackle (including 9.5 sacks), three passes defensed and one interception in 16 games.
All of those figures were a career high or tied for a career high for the 2019 first-rounder, while the 9.5 sacks were particularly noteworthy considering he is an interior lineman. Oliver and DaQuan Jones will continue to lead one of the stronger units on the team. The Bills did lose quite a bit of depth in the offseason and will probably draft a defensive lineman this weekend, but no one will enter the fray to meddle with Oliver's projected playing time, plus the Bills need a wide receiver (or two) more than any other position. If your league forces you to have a spot for both defensive ends and tackles, Oliver is one of the league's better IDP choices for the latter slot.
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Bills' Christian Benford: Should enter summer work as starter
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Benford (knee) finished the 2023 regular season with 54 tackles, 10 passes defensed, two interceptions, two forced fumbles an a fumble recovery over 15 games.
The Bills cut longtime starter Tre'Davious White in the offseason for cap purposes, leaving Benford (who started 14 regular-season games last season) and Rasul Douglas as the likely starters entering the next campaign, though the do-it-all Taron Johnson often sees work as a corner. Buffalo is out of cap space and seems likely to draft a receiver with its first-round pick, so perhaps the only real competition for Benford's job during training camp will come from 2022 first-rounder Kaiir Elam, a player that's disappointed to date and saw action in only three regular-season games last season. Benford did miss the team's playoff loss to the Chiefs due to a knee injury, though there's no word that his summer participation is under any sort of risk.
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Micah Hyde: Still considering retirement
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Bills' GM Brandon Bean told reporters Thursday that he spoke with Hyde on Wednesday and the safety is still mulling retirement, Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic reports.
Rumors about Hyde retiring began circulating toward the end of January, and he still has not made his decision. The 33-year-old has appeared in just 16 games over the past two seasons for the Bills, recording 61 total tackles and defending seven passes, including two interceptions. Hyde, who's currently a free agent, would likely have a handful of suitors if he chooses to play in 2024.
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Bills' Terrel Bernard: Moves past ankle issue
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Bernard, who missed the Bills' Jan. 21 playoff loss to the Chiefs due to an ankle injury, feels very good health-wise at this stage of the offseason, Sal Capaccio of WGR Sports Radio 550 Buffalo reports.
Prior to suffering his injury in the Bills' wild-card win over the Steelers on Jan. 15, Bernard racked up 143 tackles, 6.5 sacks and three interceptions in 17 regular-season contests. Now that his ankle has had time to heal up, the 2022 third-rounder is set to reprise his role as Buffalo's starting middle linebacker, which puts the 24-year-old in a position to remain a viable lineup option in IDP formats this coming season.
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Giants' Jordan Phillips: Picked up by Giants
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The Giants signed Phillips (wrist) on Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Phillips spent the last two years of his career with the Bills, and he'll stay in New York after agreeing to terms with the Giants. The veteran defensive lineman has appeared in 26 games over the past two seasons, recording 35 total tackles and four sacks. Phillips missed the Bills' final three games of the regular season as well as a pair of playoff games after sustaining a wrist injury, but he should be good to go for the start of the Giants' offseason program.
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Bills' Kaiir Elam: Ready for next step?
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Elam, who missed most of the 2023 regular season due to an ankle injury and coaching decisions, finished with 14 total tackles over three regular-season games.
Elam did appear in both of the Bills' playoff games, though he was limited to special teams in the divisional-round loss to the Chiefs. So far in his young career, Elam's output in two NFL seasons hasn't come close to matching his first-round status, but the Bills had to let several secondary members move on this season and will likely spend one of their high picks on receiver, so Elam may be earmarked for a more prominent role in 2024 even if he's not a starter just yet. Some comments from team brass in the offseason have indicated the Bills are hopeful Elam is ready to make that jump in performance.
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Rams' Tre'Davious White: L.A. bound
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White (Achilles) is expected to sign a one-year, $8.5 million contract with the Rams, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
After spending his first seven years in Buffalo, White is traveling cross country for a fresh start in Los Angeles. Injuries have cut his previous two seasons short, including a torn Achilles on Oct. 1 of last season. It remains to be seen if he will be ready for the start of the 2024 campaign, but the 29-year-old projects to start at cornerback once his health allows it.
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Bills' Mike Edwards: Joining Buffalo's secondary
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Edwards signed a one-year deal with the Bills on Wednesday, Maddy Glab of the team's official site reports.
While spending the 2023 campaign with the Chiefs, Edwards logged 51 tackles and one interception in 17 regular-season games, including five starts. In his new locale, the 2019 third-round selection -- who turns 28 in May -- bolsters a safety corps that recently lost Jordan Poyer to the Dolphins in free agency.
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Bills' Taron Johnson: Earns three-year extension
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The Bills signed Johnson to a three-year extension Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Johnson's new deal reportedly makes him the NFL's highest-paid nickelback, a deserved payday for the All-Pro. While appearing in all 17 regular-season games last year, he posted a career-high 98 total tackles. Johnson's versatility and ability to contribute as arguably the NFL's best nickel corner makes him instrumental for Buffalo's secondary, but for fantasy purposes he's a player to consider in lineups while not projecting as a must-start option in most IDP formats.
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Chargers' Poona Ford: Lands with Chargers
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The Chargers signed Ford to a one-year contract Thursday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.
After spending his first five seasons with the Seahawks, Ford settled for a one-year deal from the Bills last offseason and registered just nine tackles (five solo) across eight games and 151 defensive snaps for Buffalo. Ford will look to get his career back on track on another one-year pact, this time in Los Angeles for new coach Jim Harbaugh.
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Seahawks' Tyrel Dodson: Finds new home in Seattle
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The Seahawks agreed to terms on a contract with Dodson on Thursday, Jordan Schultz of BleacherReport.com reports.
Dodson will turn 26 years old in June and is coming off the best season of his four-year career last season in Buffalo, finishing with 74 tackles (57 solo), 2.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery across 17 regular-season games, including 10 starts. Dodson took on a bigger role following Matt Milano's season-ending leg injury and will now go to Seattle to help offset the departures of Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks.
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Texans' Tim Settle: Headed to Houston
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The Texans signed Settle to a two-year deal worth up to $7 million Thursday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.
After spending the first six years of his career with the Commanders and Bills, the 26-year-old defensive lineman is headed to Houston. Across Settle's two seasons with the Bills, he appeared in 32 games and recorded 33 total tackles, including 2.0 sacks, while also defending one pass. The Virginia Tech product is expected to have the chance to compete for a solid role on the Texans' defensive line, especially with the departure of Sheldon Rankins this offseason.
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Dolphins' Jordan Poyer: Joining Miami
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The Dolphins and Poyer agreed to terms on a one-year, $2 million contract Tuesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Poyer will stay in the AFC East after spending the previous seven seasons with the Bills before being released by Buffalo in a cap move last week. Poyer turns 33 years old next month but did make the Pro Bowl in 2022 after being named a first-team All-Pro in 2021. Last season, Poyer started 16 regular-season games and finished with 100 tackles (66 solo), including 1.0 sacks, and four pass breakups. It was his first season without an interception since 2016 with the Browns.
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Bills' DaQuan Jones: Remaining with Buffalo
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Jones re-signed with the Bills on a two-year contract Tuesday.
Jones has spent the past two seasons with the team, appearing in seven regular-season games last year while missing time to recover from a pectoral injury. The 31-year-old still managed to notch 2.5 sacks on the season, which was his most since the 2017 campaign.
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Bills' A.J. Epenesa: Sticking around Buffalo
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Epenesa and the Bills agreed on a two-year contract worth up to $20 million Monday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.
Epenesa will remain in Buffalo after having his most productive season since the team drafted him in 2020, recording 20 tackles, including 6.5 sacks, while also intercepting two passes and forcing a fumble over 15 games. He'll likely operate as a primary option at defensive end and quasi-starter in 2024, working in conjunction with Greg Rousseau and Von Miller, among others.
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49ers' Leonard Floyd: Heading to San Fran
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Floyd agreed to a two-year, $20 million contract with the 49ers on Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Floyd is coming off a one-year stint with the Bills that saw him tie a career high with 10.5 sacks among his 32 tackles (21 solo) while adding one pass defensed and one forced fumble across 17 games. The 31-year-old has demonstrated durability by not missing a game during the previous six seasons and now projects to provide edge-rush assistance opposite Nick Bosa.
