Former Saints WR Emmanuel Sanders signs with Bills

Former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders landed a 1-year contract with the Buffalo Bills.

Former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders landed a 1-year contract with the Buffalo Bills. The deal is worth up to $6M with a $2.75M signing bonus. The agreement includes a $2.8M base (guaranteed), $350K roster bonus (due in a couple of days), $50K in per-game roster bonuses, and $50K workout bonus, per SI's Albert Breer.

Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Sanders became a cap casualty in New Orleans after one season.

According to Spotrac.com, his Saints' contract was $10.5M against the Saints' 2021 salary cap. By releasing Saints, New Orleans created $6.5M of cap space.

Sanders, 34, entered the league as a 3rd round choice out of SMU in the 2010 draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He caught 162 passes for 2,030 yards and 11 touchdowns in four seasons with the Steelers. Sanders was a rookie member of Pittsburgh's Super Bowl XLV roster.

Dec 6, 2020; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders (17) breaks a tackle by Atlanta Falcons cornerback Darqueze Dennard (34) during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Sanders joined the Denver Broncos as a free agent in 2014. In six seasons with Denver, he earned Pro Bowl honors in 2014 and 2016. He was a playmaker for Peyton Manning and contributed heavily to their Super Bowl 50 championship team. Sanders had 404 receptions for 5,361 yards and 28 touchdowns with the Broncos, including three straight seasons of over 1,000 yards receiving.

Denver traded Sanders to San Francisco at mid-season in 2019, where he helped the 49ers to a berth in Super Bowl LIV. In just nine games with San Francisco, Sanders caught 36 passes for 502 yards and three scores. After the year, he would become a free agent where the Saints would have another opportunity to get him after a failed trade attempt in 2019.

New Orleans signed Sanders hoping he would evolve into a number two receiver opposite All-Pro WR Michael Thomas. Sanders became New Orleans' primary wideout after Thomas injured an ankle in the season opener against Tampa Bay. The injury sidelined him for nine games and limited most of the season.

Emmanuel Sanders is excellent at locating open areas in opposing defenses' zone coverages. He left New Orleans second on the team with 61 receptions for 726 yards and five touchdowns.