Anquan Boldin: Rights won't be released

Bills general manager Brandon Beane said Tuesday that the team wouldn't release its rights to Boldin and allow him to play anywhere else this season, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com reports. "We made a commitment to Anquan, and he made a commitment to us back in [training] camp. He left for the reasons he mentioned back in August," Beane said, alluding to Boldin's announcement that he would retire shortly after he signed a one-year deal with Buffalo.

About two months after indicating his career was over and subsequently landing on the Bills' reserve/retired list, the 37-year-old Boldin informed management that he was still interested in keeping his career going if he could play for a team closer to his home in Florida. The Bills reportedly gave Boldin and his agent permission about a week ago to speak with prospective suitors for the "sole purpose of discussing a trade," but with the veteran wideout's rights remaining with Buffalo following Tuesday's deadline for any deal, it looks likely that he'll stay retired. Rather than holding out hope that Boldin might reconsider his stance and play for them, the Bills were proactive in bolstering their weak wideout corps for the second half of the season, acquiring Kelvin Benjamin from the Panthers on Tuesday to likely serve as their new No. 1 receiver.