The Buffalo Bills have a decision to make on Tyrod Taylor over the next week. Will the team pick up his option for the 2017 season, guaranteeing him $30 million over the duration of his contract? It’s been debated within the Bills’ organization. And it’s not an easy decision to make.
On one hand, Taylor might be a better option than anyone the team could look at in free agency or the draft. On the other hand, that’s a whole lot of cash.
Should Buffalo decide to move on from Taylor, at least three teams have already expressed interest in the dynamic quarterback.
“At least three teams are known to have an interest in signing Tyrod Taylor if the Buffalo Bills decide to release their quarterback, Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News reported on Thursday. “They are the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and New York Jets, an NFL source said.”
None of this should really be a surprise. Cleveland, San Francisco and New York will all be in the market for a new starting quarterback this upcoming season.
After releasing Josh McCown earlier in the offseason, the Browns have yet to commit to Robert Griffin III for the 2017 campaign. That leaves Cody Kessler as the only in-house option for a team that won one game last season.
As it relates to the Jets, both Ryan Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith are slated to become free agents and are unlikely to return. That leaves Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg as the two internal options remaining in New Jersey.
Those might be some questionable quarterback situations. Though, the 49ers take the cake here. They don’t have a single quarterback on their roster after Colin Kaepernick decided to opt out of his contract. Flush with $90-plus million in cap room and heading into an offseason with a new regime, San Francisco will surely be looking for a couple quarterbacks.
A two-year starter in Buffalo, Taylor has performed exceptionally well from a statistical standpoint. During that span, the 27-year-old quarterback has combined for over 7,200 total yards with 47 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
There’s surely going to be a market for his services should Buffalo cut him loose.