ESPN names Bills a potential trade destination for former All-Pro LB

ESPN feels as though the Buffalo Bills are a potential landing spot for Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Devin White.

Kyle Silagyi | 5 Hours Ago

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The injury bug has not been kind to the second-level of the Buffalo Bills defense in recent months, attacking the linebacker corps with particular ferocity. Former All-Pro Matt Milano suffered a bicep tear in August, an ailment that will keep him sidelined “indefinitely.” Reigning second-team All-Pro nickel cornerback (and quasi-linebacker) Taron Johnson picked up a forearm injury early in Buffalo’s Week 1 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, with starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard suffering a pectoral strain in Week 2; both Johnson and Bernard appear to have avoided injured reserve, but their respective timelines are currently unknown.

Buffalo’s brass is confident in its depth options, which is justifiable given their demonstrated past ability to ‘get the most’ out of players lower on its depth chart; that said, a linebacker duo of sophomore Dorian Williams and third-year defender Baylon Spector—who have a combined five career starts under their belts entering Week 3—doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. ESPN reporter Dan Graziano feels as though the team may look outside of the organization in order to keep its linebacker room afloat as it works through injuries; in a recent 2024 NFL trade deadline preview, the writer circled One Bills Drive as a potential landing spot for Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Devin White.

“The 26-year-old former Buccaneers star signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the Eagles this offseason, but he lost the starting middle linebacker job to Nakobe Dean,” Graziano wrote. “He sat out the first game of the season because of an ankle injury but was a healthy inactive for the Week 2 Monday night game against the Falcons. Of the $4 million the Eagles gave him, more than half was in the form of a signing bonus, so he'd be an extremely cheap veteran option for a team in need. White had 83 tackles and two interceptions last season in Tampa Bay.”

Graziano notes the Bills’ injuries and subsequent lack of veteran options as reasons why White could be a fit.

White, as Graziano notes, hasn’t yet suited up for the Eagles this year, but he’s coming off a 2023 season in which he recorded 83 tackles, six pass deflections, and two interceptions for the Buccaneers. He’s recorded 566 tackles, 40 tackles for loss, 23 sacks, and 21 pass deflections throughout his five-year professional career, earning a second-team All-Pro nod in 2020 and a Pro Bowl selection in 2021.

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Praised for his athleticism, range, and burst coming out of LSU, the former fifth-overall pick has been statistically productive as a professional, but he’s never graded particularly well as a run or coverage defender, per PFF. That said, at only 26 years of age and with the skillset of a potentially high-level player, it would be interesting to see what McDermott and company could do if given the opportunity to coach White. As Graziano notes, the contract is affordable and expiring; the Eagles seemingly don’t have significant plans for him (he’s inactive again for Week 3), so their asking price may not be too high, either.

Though Buffalo hasn’t ruled out the possibility of placing Bernard on injured reserve, it hasn’t done so, yet, suggesting that the team believes he’ll be ready to return sooner rather than later; McDermott has also consistently expressed confidence in Spector as a depth option and will, thus, likely trust him to carry the load in Bernard’s absence as opposed to looking outside the organization.

Circumstances can (and likely will) change between now and the trade deadline, but given the optimism regarding Bernard’s injury timeline and the organizational confidence in Spector, it’s difficult to imagine the Bills making a move for a player like White. This year’s trade deadline is on November 5.

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