Getty O.J. Howard catches a touchdown for the Houston Texans.
The Buffalo Bills don’t often miss on evaluating players under the Brandon Beane regime, but a monster game from former tight end O.J. Howard in his debut with a new team has many fans questioning the decision to let him go.
Howard was a surprise release for the Bills on cutdown day, as many insiders believed that the former first-round tight end had a roster spot locked down. Howard instead signed with the Houston Texans, and his debut game may have the Bills second-guessing their decision.
Howard Has Career-Best Game for Texans
Howard came to the Bills as one of the biggest offseason additions, fetching a $3.5-million contract that included close to $3.2 million in guaranteed money. But it was not enough for Howard to stick on the roster, as the Bills cut him as they announced their final 52-man roster.
As NFL.com’s Kevin Patra noted, Howard looked like he could have been the second pass-catching tight end that the Bills had been lacking.
“An enticing athlete who never quite put it together in Tampa due in part to injuries, Howard generated 119 catches for 1,737 yards and 15 touchdowns in five seasons with the Bucs,” he wrote. “When he signed in Buffalo, the Bills believed he could be an excellent complement to Dawson Knox in the TE room and build on an already explosive passing game. But it didn’t work out, as he never got up to speed in the offense, struggled on the field and was outplayed.”
But the Bills’ loss was the Texans’ gain. Howard ended up signing with Houston, and on opening day had a monster game. Howard only had two catches for 38 yards, but both were touchdown scores.
Jerry Hughes’ interception helped lead to this touchdown for former #Bills tight end O.J. Howard. What a day for former Bills.
It was not only the first multiple-touchdown game of Howard’s career, but also the most touchdowns for an entire season since his second year in the league. Howard had a total of four touchdowns over his last three NFL seasons, which included a 2020 campaign in which he only played in four games.
Bills Fans Question Decision
The big performance from Howard led to some backlash from Bills fans, with many questioning why the team would cut ties with the former first-round tight end.
“The #Bills couldn’t use OJ Howard? He looks pretty good,” one fan tweeted.
Others questioned why the Bills would keep tight end Tommy Sweeney, who has just 17 catches for 158 yards and one touchdown over the course of his three-year career with the Bills.
“Two TDs for OJ Howard… I’m not letting this go. Sweeney just WASTES a roster spot,” one Twitter user complained.
Releasing Howard also paved the way for second-year tight end Quintin Morris to make the Bills roster after having spent his rookie year on the practice squad.
Bleacher Report analyst Brent Sobleski wondered if the breakout performance on Sunday really just boiled down to Howard finally reaching the potential that made him a top-ranked tight end coming out of college.
“OJ Howard has been with the Houston Texans for nine days after the Buffalo Bills cut him,” he tweeted. “The tight end now has two receiving touchdowns. Maybe we’ll finally see the version we all expected when he was a first-round pick five years ago.”