The Buffalo Bills have already made some key additions to the offense and defense in free agency, and now have turned their attention to special teams as well.
Running back and special teams captain Taiwan Jones is coming back to the team after hitting free agency, his agent announced on Friday. Terms of the contract had not yet been disclosed, Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News reported.
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Jones Returns
Though officially listed as a running back, Jones had the most impact on special teams over the last two years. As Skurski noted, he played 70.5% of special teams snaps last season, third on the team behind Tyler Matakevich and Reggie Gilliam. Jones also played 47% of special teams snaps in 2020. While he does provide an insurance policy behind running backs Devin Singletary and Zack Moss, Jones rarely saw the field on offense, playing just four total snaps in 2020 and just one last season.
Jones has been a favorite of head coach Sean McDermott, first joining the Bills in 2017, McDermott’s first season with the team. Jones left after the 2018 season, joining the Houston Texans for one season and turning in one of the most memorable offensive plays of his career — and one of the most devastating for the Bills. After the Bills nearly sacked Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson in overtime of the Wild Card round playoff game, Watson was able to escape and find Jones for what turned into a 34-yard catch and run, setting up the winning field goal.
Jones had another key playoff play in Buffalo’s favor, recovering a muffed punt against the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2021 AFC Championship game.
NFL Mic’d Up had a new camera view of Deshaun Watson’s escape-and-throw to Taiwan Jones.
Bills Could Make Some Changes on Special Teams
The Bills appear to be preparing for some changes on special teams after spotty performances last season. The NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on March 12 that the team restructured the contract of punter Matt Haack, voiding the final year of his contract and reducing his salary. The move gives the Bills the flexibility to bring in competition for Haack in training camp, allowing them to cut ties with him if he doesn’t win the job.
Matt Haack’s first punt of the postseason is a beaut, downed at the 1.
The Bills were among the teams that punted the least last season, often taking an aggressive strategy on fourth downs to keep Josh Allen and the offense on the field. Still, Haack struggled and was near the bottom of the league rankings for punters across a number of categories. He also had some high-profile miscues, including a series of shanked punts in the season finale against the New York Jets, when the Bills were trying to clinch the AFC East.
#Bills punter Matt Haack signed a revised contract, reducing his pay to $1.135 million in 2022 and voiding the last year of his contract. He now can be a free agent after the season.
Some insiders believe that it may be difficult for Haack to keep his job next season. Sal Capaccio of WGR 500 noted that Bills general manager Brandon Beane appeared to lose faith in Haack, setting up a punting competition to determine who holds the job next season.
“Given Brandon Beane’s comments at the end of the season, saying they’d be looking at punters this offseason, I’m surprised they didn’t outright move on from Haack,” Capaccio tweeted. “But he will stick….for now. Maybe until they find someone else, or he has a chance to win the job again at camp.”
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Bills Bring Back Veteran Running Back, Key Special Teams Ace