Bills releasing mainstays S Poyer, C Morse, CB White

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – The Buffalo Bills underwent a drastic makeover on Wednesday, with salary cap constraints forcing the four-time AFC East defending champions to cut into their core by announcing the release of five players, including safety Jordan Poyer and center Mitch Morse.

Also cut was cornerback Tre’Davious White, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press.

The person spoke to The AP on the condition of anonymity because the Bills did not include White in their announcement because of the timing of his release. White, who is recuperating after tearing his right Achilles tendon in Week 4, is being designated as a post-June 1 cut, which provides the Bills additional cap savings.

The three players alone combined for 27 seasons of NFL experience, with 16 of those years spent with the Bills. The moves made were necessitated with Buffalo entering the offseason being a projected NFL-high $44 million over the 2024 season cap.

Also cut were sixth-year backup cornerback Siran Neal, backup receiver Deonte Harty and running back Nyheim Hines.

The Bills saved another $8.6 million in cap space by restructuring edge rusher Von Miller’s contract, a second person with direct knowledge of the deal told The AP. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Bills don’t discuss contract discussions. Miller’s restructured contract was first reported by ESPN.com.

The depth of cuts was severe and in some cases surprising when it came to the departures of Morse and, perhaps, White. But they were necessitated by a bloated payroll that came as a result of GM Brandon Beane’s pursuit to build a contender coupled with the transition teams face in the heightened costs of retaining star players.

Quarterback Josh Allen, whose six-year, $258 million contract kicked in last season, represents a $47 million salary cap hit alone in 2024. Add in receiver Stefon Diggs and left tackle Dion Dawkins, and the three players’ total of $91.5 million makes up nearly 35% of Buffalo’s $255.4 salary cap limit.

While Beane expressed relief at the NFL’s combine in Indianapolis in welcoming news of the cap making a league-record $30.6 million jump entering 2024, he also understood the challenge ahead.

The balancing act was creating enough flexibility to restock a roster that at the time featured 22 players eligible to become unrestricted free agents, and how much cap money he pushed into the future that could limit his spending in the following seasons.

“Now that we know the cap, we’re working through getting under, and then how much can we create without totally piling up a huge mess in 2025 or ’26,” he said.

The Bills enter a reset period in their transition, with Beane’s priorities focused on attempting to re-sign edge rushers A.J. Epenesa and Leonard Floyd, and defensive tackle DaQuan Jones before the signing period officially begins on March 13.