Bills' Salary Cap Purge: Reliable Center Mitch Morse Falls Victim

Clearing salary cap space, the Buffalo Bills created a hole on their offensive line by releasing team captain Mitch Morse as part of a multitude of moves on Wednesday.

It was purge day at One Bills Drive with Buffalo officially announcing the release of five veteran players.

While multiple moves were expected to be made with the team reportedly $40 million over the salary cap, there were a couple of surprises as well. The Bills chose to cut center Mitch Morse, leaving a gaping hole in the middle of an offensive line that had remained intact throughout the entire 2023 season.

Morse, a Pro Bowler in 2022, was due to earn $8.5 million for what would have been his sixth season as a Bill. The Kansas City Chiefs' 2015 second-round draft pick signed with Buffalo as a free agent in 2019 and proceeded to make 77 regular season starts.

The 31-year-old Morse, who was voted as a team captain in 2022 and 2023, provided a visible leadership element to the Bills' locker room. He was featured frequently during player media sessions. After battling concussion issues earlier during his Buffalo tenure, Morse was available to start all 17 games this past season.

Despite Buffalo's need to create cap savings, it appeared as if Morse would play out the final year on his contract as the starting center, especially once second-string center Ryan Bates was traded to the Chicago Bears.

With Bates, the one-time heir apparent, gone, it's been suggested that the Bills plan to move starting guard Connor McGovern over to center. After signing a three-year free-agent contract last offseason, McGovern started every agency at left guard for the 2023 Bills.

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Although he's primarily played guard in the NFL, McGovern has snapping experience from his college days. He was Penn State's starting center in 2017 before moving to guard the following season. Reportedly, the Bills have been grooming reserve Alec Anderson to handle backup center duties.