Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘The Bills chose to give Bates the lowest tender, one which does not require the signing team to produce any form of compensation. They could have given him the middle-tier tender of $3.986 million which would have brought back a valuable second-round pick, and given the value of that asset, it usually ensures the player isn’t going to leave.’

‘Hill has been a tremendous thorn in the side of the Bills the past few years as he teamed with Patrick Mahomes to torture Buffalo’s defense, especially in the two playoff games. In five games total, Hill has 37 catches for 446 yards and one touchdown against a Buffalo pass defense that has been one of the best in the NFL for five years running.’

‘Given their interest in McKissic, and now Johnson, it appears under new OC Ken Dorsey that the Bills want a player to replace Singletary on passing downs and those snap counts should rise.’

‘The Bills re-signed Isaiah McKenzie to a two-year deal, presumably to help fill Beasley’s void, but Crowder has far more experience and a bigger resume so if he can stay healthy, it’s likely that Crowder would get the bulk of the snaps when Buffalo goes to three receivers, and McKenzie would continue to fill his role as an optional weapon.’

‘Barkley had been Allen’s backup between 2018-20, though his playing time was extremely limited. During 2018 when Allen suffered a thumb injury, the Bills cycled through Nathan Peterman and Derek Anderson before signing Barkley off waivers on Oct. 31.’

‘Keenum is the very definition of a journeyman as he has traversed all over the NFL landscape since entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2013 out of the University of Houston.’

‘Obviously, signing star edge rusher Von Miller doesn’t guarantee that Buffalo will win the Super Bowl in 2022 or any future year, but Beane saw an opportunity to bring in a player who could prove to be the missing link for the Bills in their quest to end their Super Bowl drought, so he pounced.’

‘Exhibiting a welcome dose of heartfelt honesty, Miller willingly pulled back the curtain to reveal the back and forth confliction he experienced when it came to choosing between staying with the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams and all the glitz, glamour, surf, sun and excitement of the Hollywood lifestyle that comes with Southern California, or moving across the country to, um, Buffalo, to play for a weather-challenged franchise forever in search of a maddeningly elusive NFL championship.’

‘The Bills made this move despite the fact that they will have to eat an ugly salary cap hit of $7.7 million, and will only see $1.5 million of cap space created by his departure.’

‘“I didn’t want to leave; I wish I didn’t,” he said Thursday after signing a one-year contract to return to the place that he said just feels like home. “It was sad because everyone thought I was leaving for the money. Me and Brandon talked and it just seemed like the better opportunity was for me to leave at the time and it served its purpose, but my end goal was always to come back here and I’m happy it worked out. A lot of smiley faces, everybody’s giddy, I’m real giddy. I haven’t slept yet. And I have so much energy right now that it’s a great feeling.”’

‘He was frustrated by his lack of playing time and sharing snaps with the likes of Akeem Spence, Davon Godchaux and Vincent Taylor, and made his feelings perfectly clear during a sideline tirade the day before he was cut.’

‘Lawson, who former coach Rex Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley selected with the 19th pick of the first round in the 2016 NFL Draft, is returning to the Bills after two years away, same as Phillips.’

‘Settle simply didn’t get much of an opportunity in Washington, but several evaluators have seen enough film to believe that with a change of scenery he could really have a breakout year for the Bills.’

‘The team also on Thursday re-worked the contract of Matt Milano which freed another $5.1 million.’

‘Miller has recorded 115.5 sacks during his 11-year NFL career including 9.5 combined between Denver and Los Angeles last season. He is an eight-time Pro Bowler, a three-time All-Pro, a two-time Super Bowl champ and was the MVP of Super Bowl 50.’