2024 Bills 53-man roster projection: Pre-minicamp edition

We're projecting the Buffalo Bills' 53-man roster before mandatory minicamp kicks off.

Kyle Silagyi | May 17, 2024

Bills QB Josh Allen talks to the offensive line in the huddle about a play during the second half of / Tina MacIntyre-Yee /Rochester Democrat

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The smell of football is in the air.

The sport has a bit of a unique scent in Western New York, one of burnt hot dogs, deep-fried chicken appendages, and spilled Labatt Blue. It’s a smell that Bills Mafia will again experience in just a few short months, as the team is slated to kick off its 2024 regular season slate at Highmark Stadium against the Arizona Cardinals on September 8 at 1:00 p.m.

Much has to be accomplished before the Buffalo Bills take the field in Week 1, however; the team has to work through mini-and-training camps, deciding several position battles along the way. Buffalo also has to trim its roster down from 90 to 53 men, a significant reduction that will see some undoubtedly talented and intriguing players left without a job.

The Bills will host their mandatory veteran minicamp early next month (starting June 11) before kicking off training camp at Rochester’s St. John Fisher University this summer. Before the bustle of summer workouts truly begins, we’ve decided to project Buffalo’s final 53-man roster based on the players it currently employs.

Offense

Quarterback (2)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) celebrates with fans after his 81 yard touchdown pass to / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

Josh Allen, Mitchell Trubisky

No surprises here. Josh Allen is one of the league’s premier quarterbacks and figures to helm Buffalo’s offense for the next decade yet. Mitchell Trubisky, who spent the 2021 NFL season with the Bills, returns to the City of Good Neighbors after a brief stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers; he’ll again serve as Allen’s backup and golf buddy.

Running Back (4)

Dec 17, 2023; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills running back James Cook (4) celebrates a / Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

James Cook, Ray Davis, Ty Johnson, FB Reggie Gilliam

James Cook enters the 2024 NFL season hot off a breakout sophomore campaign in which he finished sixth in the NFL in scrimmage yards (1,567). His late-season emergence was fueled largely by the promotion of former Buffalo quarterbacks coach Joe Brady to offensive coordinator and play-caller; the young offensive mind got Cook roughly 20 touches per game after taking over play-calling duties in Week 11. Cook figures to play a prominent role in the offense again, and he’ll be spelled by stout fourth-round rookie Ray Davis in short-yardage and goalline situations. Ty Johnson brought some juice off the bench in a limited role last year and could do so again in a depth capacity this season. Fullback Reggie Gilliam is a little-used, but oft-impactful presence who excels as a blocker and special teamer—his role and safety are not in question.

Wide Receiver (6)

Jan 15, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir (10) runs the / Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Mack Hollins, Tyrell Shavers

How the snaps and target share ultimately divvy out between Khalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel, and Keon Coleman remains to be seen, but all three are locks to make the roster. Shakir and Samuel both possess some slot/boundary versatility while Coleman seems set to start his career out wide for the Bills.

The bottom of the depth chart is where things get interesting; though the recently signed Marquez Valdes-Scantling is far from stellar, he’s not a necessarily poor fourth option. He’s a big-bodied boundary field stretcher who offers something different to the offense and has been impactful in past postseasons; it’s easy to imagine Buffalo wanting to keep that profile around. Mack Hollins is a situational boundary option and special teamer, while the 6-foot-4 Tyrell Shavers, who signed with Buffalo after going unselected in the 2023 NFL Draft and spent his rookie year on the team’s practice squad, fits a similar profile; he could be a red zone chesspiece and core special teamer, as he was a dynamic special teams player and gunner in college.

Tight End (3)

Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid (86) scores on this 29 yard catch. / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox, Quintin Morris

No changes in the tight end room from last season. Dalton Kincaid showed promise in his rookie campaign and figures to take on a bigger role this year. Dawson Knox has factored prominently into the passing attack in each of his five previous NFL seasons and figures to do so yet again this year. Previously converted wide receiver Quintin Morris has shown flashes of ability throughout the two professional seasons in which he’s logged meaningful snaps; he’s also improved as a blocker and plays a role on special teams.

Offensive Line (9)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) follows a block by Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Dion / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

Dion Dawkins, David Edwards, Connor McGovern, O'Cyrus Torrence, Spencer Brown, La'el Collins, Ryan Van Demark, Alec Anderson, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger

There’s a lot of carryover for an offensive line that had one of its best years in recent memory last season. Dion Dawkins, David Edwards, Connor McGovern, O’Cyrus Torrence, and Spencer Brown project as the starters across the unit; McGovern slides over to fill the hole left by the released Mitch Morse at center while Edwards fills his vacancy at left guard. Ryan Van Demark is a depth tackle and extra blocker while Alec Anderson is the versatile ‘swing’ lineman who can play all five positions that Buffalo so demonstrably values. The recently signed La’el Collins is a veteran depth piece who has experience at both guard and tackle (he’s been a right tackle for the past several years of his career) while fifth-round pick Sedrick Van Pran-Granger is a long-term developmental option who serves as the team’s primary back-up at center.

Defense

Defensive Line (9)

Jan 21, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) against / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

DT: Ed Oliver, DaQuan Jones, Austin Johnson, DeWayne Carter

DE: Greg Rousseau, A.J. Epenesa, Von Miller, Casey Toohill, Javon Solomon

Ed Oliver and DaQuan Jones have proven to be an elite defensive tackle tandem throughout the past few years, with Jones truly helping Oliver cement himself as one of the league’s strongest interior pass-rush generators. Rookie DeWayne Carter and free agent signee Austin Johnson figure to feature relatively prominently in rotational roles, with Carter, in particular, being an intriguing long-term piece for Buffalo.

Greg Rousseau and A.J. Epenesa project as the starters at defensive end, with the NFL’s all-time active sack leader Von Miller penciled in as a rotational defender in his age-35 season. Offseason acquisition Casey Toohill has graded well as a run defender throughout his career (per PFF) and tallied five sacks last year; he’s a solid fourth option. Fifth-round pick Javon Solomon, who led the FBS in sacks at Troy last year with 16, is an immediate pass-rush specialist for Buffalo who could develop into something more in subsequent seasons.

Linebacker (6)

Buffalo Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard (43) closes in on Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

Matt Milano, Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, Edefuan Ulofoshio, Baylon Spector, Nicholas Morrow

Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard are a dynamic, game-wrecking linebacker duo when healthy, their athleticism allowing the two to effectively patrol and impact the game over the middle of the field. Buffalo hopes the two will be healthy, as both have injury concerns (with Milano, in particular, missing most of the year after fracturing his right tibia in Week 5); sophomore Dorian Williams and rookie Edefuan Ulofoshio serve as the primary depth, with both also figuring to play a role on special teams. Baylon Spector and Nicholas Morrow currently project as special teamers and extreme depth options; that said, it’s not difficult to envision Buffalo making a move at this position that could push one, or both, of them off the roster.

Cornerback (5)

Jan 21, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills cornerback Rasul Douglas (31) reacts / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Rasul Douglas, Christian Benford, Kaiir Elam, Ja'Marcus Ingram, Keni-H Lovely

Rasul Douglas and Christian Benford project as the team’s starters at cornerback, with 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam serving as its primary depth option. The former Florida Gator has underwhelmed throughout his career, but the team hopes that he can reclaim some of the promise that made him the 23rd overall pick in a recent draft under new cornerbacks coach Jamile Addae. The team likes former University at Buffalo defensive back Ja’Marcus Ingram and has developed him throughout the past few seasons; his roster status seems secure.

Keni-H Lovely is perhaps the boldest player on this projection, but he has an interesting skill set; he’s a playmaker and ball-hawk, coming down with six picks and 10 pass deflections throughout his collegiate career. He also ran a 4.35-second 40-yard dash at his pro day. Given the undrafted free agent’s intriguing long-term profile, Buffalo’s lack of depth at corner, and the rate at which its players are picked off by other teams after its trim down to 53 players, it may behoove the Bills to keep Lovely around on the active roster.

Nickel (2)

Dec 10, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Buffalo Bills cornerback Taron Johnson (7) gets ready / Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Taron Johnson, Daequan Hardy

Buffalo has long treated nickel cornerback as its own position on the field and now effectively does so in roster construction, so we’ll follow suit here. Taron Johnson is one of the league’s premier slot defenders, playing on the vast majority of the team’s defensive snaps in every year in which he’s been healthy. Sixth-round rookie Daequan Hardy is a long-term developmental option at the position and an immediate special teams returner; he scored two touchdowns on punt returns at Penn State last season.

Safety (4)

Sep 3, 2022; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators running back Montrell Johnson Jr. (2) runs / Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Cole Bishop, Mike Edwards, Taylor Rapp, Cam Lewis

The Bills saw a lot of turnover at safety in the offseason, moving on from stalwarts Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, who combined for 202 starts over the past seven seasons. While Hyde may still return, this is far from a certainty; it looks as though Buffalo’s starting safeties will be some combination of the returning Taylor Rapp, free agent signee Mike Edwards, and second-round rookie Cole Bishop. We’ll give the nod to Edwards and Bishop, with Rapp again playing the depth role he played last season. Cam Lewis again serves as depth at the position.

Specialists (3)

Jan 21, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills place kicker Tyler Bass (2) misses a 44 / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Bass, Sam Martin, Reid Ferguson

No surprises here. Tyler Bass and Reid Ferguson face no competition at their respective positions, so they’re locks. Sam Martin is in a punter battle with Matt Haack and undrafted free agent Jack Browning, but we’ll give the nod to Martin because, A) Buffalo fans know what Haack is, and B) Browning also kicked field goals at San Diego State, suggesting that he’d have to learn to hold at the professional level. With Bass struggling down the stretch last year, it may be best to opt for a holder he's comfortable with to start the year.

Published May 17, 2024|Modified May 17, 2024

KYLE SILAGYI