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The Buffalo Bills said goodbye to veteran defensive back and special teams ace Siran Neal as part of their offseason roster overhaul, but they may see the veteran again next season.
Insider Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports reported that there is some immediate interest in Neal from a pair of AFC East rivals.
“Free agency buzz: Recently released #Bills DB Siran Neal could end up staying in the AFC East,” Benjamin wrote on X. “The special teams ace has already drawn interest from the #Jets and #Patriots, source tells @CBSSports. Others are expected to be involved leading into FA.”
Neal had been a reserve on defense but a main part of the team’s special teams units, but lost his spot on the roster as the Bills made some major changes to generate cap space.
Siran Neal Cut Loose With Other Veterans
The Bills had released Neal along with a number of other veteran players on March 6. The team announced that cornerback Tre’Davious White had been released, along with safety Jordan Poyer, receiver/return specialist Deonte Harty and center Mitch Morse. The team had also released running back Nyheim Hines earlier in the week.
As Mark Inabinett of AL.com reported, Neal was headed into the final year of his three-year, $9 million contract extension signed in 2022. Inabinnett noted that Neal was a reliable player — missing only two games over the course of six NFL seasons — with a reputation as one of the league’s best special teams players.
“Since Neal entered the NFL as a fifth-round draft selection from Jacksonville State in 2018, only three players in the league have more special-teams plays with one team than Neal’s 1,714 in regular-season play with the Bills,” Inabinett wrote. “He’s also played 567 defensive snaps in 97 regular-season games. Neal also has played in 10 postseason games with Buffalo.”
The Bills saved $2.88 million in salary cap space by releasing Neal, and freed up a total of $36.16 million through six moves made this week, Kevin Patra of NFL.com reported.
Bills Paying Attention to Special Teams
The Bills made some other moves on special teams this week, announcing on Wednesday that they were bringing back veteran punter Matt Haack on a new contract.
Haack played for the Bills during the 2021 season and was re-signed to the roster last season after punter Sam Martin was hurt in the team’s wild-card round win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Martin was ultimately able to play in the team’s divisional-round loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Neal’s release could allow the Bills to move second-year receiver Justin Shorter into a special teams role. Shorter missed his rookie season after being placed on injured reserve before the start of the year, but general manager Brandon Beane praised his ability to contribute on special teams.
“A lot of times that’s how guys, they get that jersey on game day and so they’ve got to know the offense or they got to know the defense and ultimately at some point they’re going to be in the game and Josh Allen is going to have to throw to him,” Beane said, via the Buffalo News. “So a lot’s on him. We believe in him. You can see he’s a pretty good-looking dude. You like the build and so we just got to work with him. … We think there’s some good upside.”
