In one of the more questionable moves of the offseason thus far, the Buffalo Bills fired their head coach, Sean McDermott, and have since promoted his offensive coordinator, Joe Brady, to replace him. Now, after winning 12 games and reaching the playoffs in each of the past seven seasons, the Bills have to find ways to improve.
Yet, before the Bills can upgrade the roster, they’ll have to clear some cap space as they’re projected to enter the offseason roughly $7 million above the salary cap. One of the ways they can clear some space is by cutting players from the roster, but it may require cutting a Pro Bowler.
Recently, The Athletic‘s Joe Buscaglia suggested cutting tight end Dawson Knox, which would save $9.6 million, could be one of the ways Buffalo gets below the cap.
“Without question, their most complex decision will be on Knox. The Bills can save $9.664 million before another contract replaces it in the Top 51, which is a massive amount that could go a long way for the team. Outside of Knox, the Bills have Dalton Kincaid and Jackson Hawes at tight end, a pair of players with complementary skill sets. The team has already committed to giving Kincaid his fifth-year option for 2027, and Hawes is signed through the 2028 season. Knox isn’t as good a receiver as Kincaid, and isn’t as good a blocker as Hawes, but has a better blend of the two than both. Knox is also one of Allen’s best friends on the team, so there’s that element to it. However, there is no getting around a net savings of almost $9 million.”
The Athletic on Dawson Knox
If the Bills do move on from Knox, they’d be saying goodbye not only to one of Josh Allen‘s best friends on the team, but also to a one-time Pro Bowler. Yet, as noted, Dalton Kincaid has already surpassed Knox’s production as a pass-catcher, so Buffalo may determine that Knox isn’t worth his current contract.
Of course, they could also reach a different resolution by adjusting Knox’s contract, bringing his 2026 cap hit down in the process. If Knox wants to see what his new coach is capable of accomplishing as the head coach, while building on his success with his QB, perhaps Buffalo finds a different path forward.
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