Latest news with #KhalilShakir
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bills Called One of Most Complete Rosters in 2025
Bills Called One of Most Complete Rosters in 2025 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. If a team has a top quarterback, chances are that organization is going to have one of the best chances to win a Super Bowl each year. Advertisement That is the reality the Buffalo Bills have on their hands. With the reigning MVP in Josh Allen, the Bills are hoping their title drought can finally come to an end during the 2025 season. There are many people who believe the organization can successfully reach their goal, too. Especially after having a very successful offseason filled with defensive improvements across the board. NFL Media analyst Eric Edholm, ranked the Bills as the fifth most complete team in the league. Only the Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens, Detroit Lions, and Kansas City Chiefs were ranked above them. "Reigning MVP Josh Allen is coming off arguably his best season to date, and he remains in his prime at 29 years old," Edholm said. "He's protected by a well-constructed offensive line that brings all five starters back. He also has a good group of tight ends (although Dalton Kincaid needs to do more) and a strong run game. Advertisement "The Bills would undoubtedly love it if one of their new receivers, such as Josh Palmer or Elijah Moore, steps up, but they also can count on continued development from Khalil Shakir and Keon Coleman." If Buffalo's new-look defense can hit the ground running, and their offense doesn't miss a beat, the organization could be well on their way to finally ending Kansas City's run at the AFC crown. And finally giving themselves a real chance at Super Bowl LX. Related: Diggs 'Getting Cut Is On The Table' for Patriots Amid 'Pink Crystals' Controversy? Related: Bills Veteran Has Rough First Day of OTAs This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
29-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
ESPN: Bills made the 'best move' of the 2025 NFL offseason
ESPN: Bills made the 'best move' of the 2025 NFL offseason A lot went down for the Buffalo Bills during the 2025 NFL offseason but one under-the-radar move earned huge praise from ESPN. The outlet highlighted 100-NFL related things ahead of next season and in a mention of the Bills, one decision was called the "best move" by any team during the entire spring. Wide receiver Khalil Shakir inked a four-extension in Buffalo which was the transaction earning huge praise. Shakir was originally a fifth-round pick of the Bills in 2022. His rise is an example of patience as he only had 10 catches his rookie season before slowly breaking out over the past two years. Shakir led the Bills in targets (100), receptions (76) and receiving yards (821) in 2024. ESPN's Benjamin Solak's breakdown on the Bills-Shakir deal can be found below:
New York Times
19-05-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Why 2025 is Bills' inflection point to extend the winning window for Josh Allen's prime
The NFL Draft is well over, the schedule for the upcoming season is out and the Buffalo Bills are a little over one week away from beginning their first round of organized team activities. And with how they pieced things together this offseason, though 2024 led some to wonder whether a step back was on the way, 2025 is the opposite. Advertisement The Bills appear on the precipice of another memorable season and will likely be in the Super Bowl conversation all year. A year ago at this time, when we took a deep dive into where things were heading into the 2025 offseason, the conclusion was that all the roster and cap cutting from last year, along with their trove of valuable draft picks, was setting the Bills up to be major players in the offseason. And major players they were — just in their own way. Their approach to the 2025 offseason had one clear goal: set up a new core for the long term around franchise quarterback Josh Allen throughout the rest of his prime. For one, they signed a new contract extension with Allen, ensuring he's under contract through 2030, the quarterback's age-34 season. On top of that, they issued long-term extensions to homegrown players in or entering their prime, including wide receiver Khalil Shakir, defensive end Greg Rousseau, linebacker Terrel Bernard and cornerback Christian Benford. They join right tackle Spencer Brown, whom the Bills signed last offseason, as the new key group that helps lead the Bills with Allen for the foreseeable future. Putting five long-term players in place, along with a nine-player draft class on four-year cost-controlled deals, and filling in gaps with one notable pass rusher (Joey Bosa) and middle-tier free agents (wide receiver Joshua Palmer and defensive end Michael Hoecht) was as substantial an offseason as the Bills have had in many years. But as always, with as much emphasis the team will place on the 2025 season and trying to maximize things for Allen and the current team, keeping an eye on what's ahead is always percolating in the front office's mind. That's why it's equally important for fans to keep a close eye on what's ahead because of how much the 2025 season can shape those critical decisions less than a year from now — especially with Allen entering his age-30 season when 2026 rolls around. Advertisement Where are things headed in 2026, and how can 2025 help inform them of those plans? Let's analyze. Around this time last year, the Bills were in a promising position for cap space. They already projected to have cap space, which was a first for them in a few years and allowed them the liberty to go on the re-signing frenzy they did this offseason without using too many restructures or roster cuts. The 2026 offseason is going to be a slightly different story. With a projected salary cap of $295.5 million, Over the Cap has the Bills projected almost $400K over that mark. However, you have to consider many other things, which put the Bills in a worse position. For one, six of those contracts listed within that Top 51 are void years, which transfers to dead cap when they expire shortly after the 2025 season. That means six new contracts will have to take their place on the cap sheet, putting their cap space in a worse position. The other puzzle piece is that three members of the Bills' 2025 draft class, first-round pick Maxwell Hairston, second-round pick T.J. Sanders and fourth-round pick Deone Walker, remain unsigned. Those three contracts, plus three undrafted rookie deals, will replace those six vacated void deals. That will put a projected extra $10 million on the Top 51 of their 2026 cap sheet, putting the team about $10.5 million over next year's projected cap. That number could improve if they have any rollover savings from 2025 to 2026, but it likely won't be all that substantial. That means, unlike this offseason, they'll likely have to dip their toes back into the waters of contract restructures, cap casualties and pay cuts to create workable space in 2026. If the entire offseason you've been thinking, 'Why don't they just get the deal done with James Cook like all the others?' the 2026 cap space snapshot can help you begin to see why the Bills are playing it the way they are. Not only is Cook a free agent, but so is starting center Connor McGovern, starting left guard David Edwards, defensive end Joey Bosa and linebacker Matt Milano, among others. Advertisement On top of all those upcoming free agents, in 2027, the free-agent list includes up-and-coming starting right guard O'Cyrus Torrence and a potential significant salary increase for tight end Dalton Kincaid, should they trigger the fifth-year option on Kincaid's rookie deal. Although the first year of a contract extension for someone like Cook usually yields a lower cap number, if the Bills are working with potentially limited cap resources next year as it is and have so many questions hanging over their heads for other ways to open cap space, taking a patient approach to see how 2025 plays out seems like an intelligent way to go about it. When you analyze their roster situation, there are only two extremely straightforward contract restructures for them to tap into. The first and most obvious is Allen, which would yield over $12 million in cap space to put them in the positive. It's likely not a matter of 'if' but 'when' for that move. The second is for Brown, the right tackle. They could save under $5 million on that simple restructure. Those two moves will give them over $6 million in cap space. Every other potential move they could make comes with a giant question mark. They have a trio of longtime Bills players they could restructure next year, but each has concerns about kicking cap space to future years. From an age perspective, left tackle Dion Dawkins will be 32 for the 2026 season, and nickel Taron Johnson will be 30. Defensive tackle Ed Oliver will be only 28 in 2026, but the team did just draft Sanders and has a potential out from Oliver's deal in 2027, yielding $13 million in cap space that year, which might persuade them to resist the temptation of taking away some of that flexibility. Other possible significant restructures with 2025 free-agent signings Palmer and Hoecht are tricky. In Palmer's case, it would place another $4 million onto his void-year dead cap charge in 2028. Hoecht would add another $2 million onto his in 2028, but it remains to be seen whether he's anything more than a rotational player. Then there are the cap casualty candidates, who all would save them a good amount of cap space, but who all have at least a small reason to consider keeping them in 2026. Tight end Dawson Knox would save the most, but the team loves him, and he plays a big role. Wide receiver Curtis Samuel would save the second most, but he came on strong in the playoffs, which built some optimism within the front office about what he could do in the second year. Taylor Rapp would save the third most, but he's a starting safety, and the Bills don't have an in-house replacement for him yet unless fifth-round rookie Jordan Hancock shows well in 2025. Then there's kicker Tyler Bass, which will be self-explanatory based on results, and running back Ty Johnson, who is likely directly correlated to what happens with Cook. At least from the Bills' perspective, there aren't many easy answers to their cap questions in 2026 just yet. But in this case, patience will yield prudence. Regarding what's ahead in the 2026 offseason, the Bills would be smart to go with the wait-and-see attitude heading into 2025. There are so many things in the air that holding the line, at least for now, is the most sensible approach. Though they have some potential questions at defensive end, outside linebacker and safety, they at least have some temporary in-house answers. Most of the big questions requiring immediate answers are on offense. So then, 'let's see' mode awaits. Advertisement Let's see how Cook performs in 2025, whether his role increases from only the top snap-getter in a committee, and whether he proves he should be one of their long-term investments — despite not playing a premium position. If not, or he takes a step back, it could mean they move forward with Ray Davis, Johnson and a rookie they draft next year. Let's see whether Torrence continues his strong second half in 2024 into 2025 and becomes one of the core players they want to invest in for the long term next offseason. And if so, that might worsen their consideration of extending one or both of McGovern and Edwards. Let's see whether Kincaid leaps forward now that he's no longer injured, which could put him in the extension conversation and directly affect any decisions about Knox. It may even affect how they deal with the Cook situation, too, considering running back and tight end are viewed by the NFL as two non-premium positions. And, finally, let's see whether this wide receivers group, as constructed, can give the Bills some of the intermediate and downfield lift they had been missing in 2024. Because if it doesn't, that might mean they say goodbye to Samuel, decline to restructure Palmer's deal and use what resources they do have to come up with a solution in 2026, perhaps even that being their big swing next offseason. So much is at stake for the 2025 season by itself, with the Bills looking to finally get to the Super Bowl with Allen as their quarterback and having a great roster to try to do so. But, more so than several other seasons, the amount of information they get from this year will have a severe ripple effect in shaping not only what they target in the offseason but also how they choose to open up the cap space to do so. With so much on the line and Allen heading into his 30s beginning in 2026, the emphasis on getting those moves right and extending the winning window is more important than almost everything else — outside of doing everything they can to win it all in 2025.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Elijah Moore Takes Shot At Browns, Needs Bills' Josh Allen To Save Career
The Buffalo Bills made multiple moves during the offseason to bolster their receiving core. Not only did the team extend Khalil Shakir to a long-term deal, but they also signed free agents like Joshua Palmer and Laviska Shenault. One of the most recent pickups, though, was former second-round receiver Elijah Moore. Advertisement Moore has been a consistent receiver over this first four-year career with both the Jets and Browns, but he's now fighting to stay in the NFL. It's why he choose to join the Bills in the first place. When a league MVP at quarterback is on the team like Josh Allen, Moore's choice was quite easy. "For me, it's more like my whole career, I haven't really had too many great opportunities with a stable quarterback the entire season," said Moore. Is that a poke at the Browns? Maybe. But it's also a statistical fact. "Being blessed with the opportunity to, God willing, have 17 for the entire season with the MVP at that, a top-tier caliber player, top-tier caliber team, top-tier caliber coaches, putting you in position -- I feel like it would just be the best position that I've been put in yet." Advertisement Buffalo has a plethora of offensive weapons to choose from this year. Moore's status on the team is not guaranteed at this point. He'll have to earn his playing time moving forward. The fact that he was able to play well in both New York and Cleveland shows he can still produce well. So Buffalo may have come away with a quality veteran on the open market later than most teams find their final roster spots. It'll be up to Allen and Moore himself to find a way to save his career moving forward. Related: Bills Rookie Models Game After NFL All-Pro Related: Bills Get Easy 2025 Schedule Predicted By NFL Insider
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Schefter Predicts Major Changes for Bills
The Buffalo Bills may not have drafted a wide receiver within the first six rounds of the 2025 draft, but that doesn't mean the team isn't loaded at the position. Buffalo already had veteran players returning to the team, such as Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir, and Curtis Samuel. They have recently signed Joshua Palmer and Elijah Moore to the group as well. Advertisement Add in Laviska Shenault, and KJ Hamler and it isn't a surprise as to why the Bills have some major decisions to make regarding the position group. That's something ESPN Insider Adam Schefter pointed to as well. 'Well, I think, again, it's a low-risk deal on a wide receiver who's got some upside. And I know that Bills fans seem to want Brandon Bean, as he pointed out, to take a wide receiver early on. And they didn't get a wide receiver, but they helped the defense," said Schefter. "I mean, they have so many that there's not room for all of them right now." Most teams keep around five to six wide receivers on an active roster. As things stand, Buffalo have seven to eight receivers who will be in contention to make the final 53-man group. Advertisement There are some like Coleman, Shakir, and Palmer that are no-brainers. These are players the team spent significant capital on whether it be draft picks or actual cash. Others, like Hamler, Moore, and Samuel, are considered to be on the roster bubble. One play could determine their whole future. This is why change will inevitably come to the group heading into training camp at some point. Related: Bills Trade For 6-7, 344-Pound Phenom After Sweating It Related: Bills James Cook Predicted Fantasy Stars Suggest New Contract
