The Buffalo Bills are giving their wide receiving corps a midseason overhaul, and one starter is losing his spot on the roster as a result.
The Bills announced on Saturday that they signed veteran wide receiver Mecole Hardman to the active roster just days after he joined the practice squad. They also elevated returning veteran Gabe Davis from the practice squad, giving quarterback Josh Allen two new targets.
To make room for Hardman’s addition, the Bills released their starting return specialist who had been struggling to keep his spot on the depth chart.
Bills Cut Ties With Brandon Codrington
The Bills announced that they released return specialist and cornerback Brandon Codrington, who had been a healthy scratch in five games this season after serving as the kick returner in all 17 regular-season games last year.
There had been signs of trouble for Codrington, who struggled when inserted at his given position on defense as a cornerback. He was first listed as inactive for the team’s win over the New Orleans Saints in September, with head coach Sean McDermott explaining that the team wanted to try some other players at the kick returner position.
âSeeing how the gameday roster looks with certain players up and certain players down, with the goal of making sure we have our best guys out there,â McDermott told reporters.
Codrington’s production made it difficult for the Bills to justify keeping a roster spot for a player who only returned kicks. He returned 14 kicks for 375 yards, a 26.8-yard average. Codrington also returned 10 punts for just 58 total yards.
Bills Facing Critical Game
The Bills host the Buccaneers on Sunday in a game that could have major implications for the playoff race. The New England Patriots already won their Week 11 game, taking down the shorthanded New York Jets on Thursday to move to 9-2.
The Bills are currently three losses behind the Patriots, who sit alone atop the AFC East and hold the tiebreaker over the Bills.
Quarterback Josh Allen addressed the team’s offensive struggles this season, saying the running and passing games need to work better together.
“Offenses are always gonna be easier when you’re running the ball effectively,” Allen said, via The Associated Press.
“But yeah, we got to be better in the pass game, we know that, I know that,” he added. “But I definitely think we’re more than capable of being able to do that.”
Davis, who was on the injured list until earlier this month and is set to make his debut on Sunday, also believes he has diagnosed some of the problems on offense.
“Honestly, I just think we have to play to our standards,” Davis told reporters on Wednesday. “I feel like we all as a collective forgot about how hard it is to win. It doesn’t matter who we play. It’s about us, and we got to go out there and play our game.”
The Bills may have cleared the way for Davis and Hardman to take on a bigger role on offense, with reports that second-year receiver Keon Coleman will be a healthy scratch for Sunday’s game.
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