Bills Turn Heads Signing Ex-Veteran Before Final Cuts: Report

The Buffalo Bills have a lot of tough decisions to make as they work toward cutting down their roster to 53 players by Tuesday, August 26 at 4 p.m. ET.

One day after the Bills’ preseason finale against Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium, Buffalo released eight players: running back Elijah Young, cornerback Zy Alexander, offensive lineman Rush Reimer, tight end Matt Sokol, defensive back Garnett Hollis Jr., defensive end Nelson Ceaser, safety Tre Herndon, and wide receiver Grant Dubose (injury designation).

While none of these cuts came as a surprise, the next two days will prove to be much more difficult. “It’s brutal,” Bills head coach McDermott said of this year’s process per Democrat & Chronicle. “It’s something that we owe them to take our time and make sure we get this right, not only for the benefit of our team, but for them and their careers.

“These young men spend so long trying to get themselves to this level, and then sometimes they only get one shot with one team, and so we’ve got to make sure we get this right.”

Amid the focus to whittle the roster down, however, the Bills made the surprising move on Sunday, August 24 to actually bring a familiar face, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, back into the fold.

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The Bills Plan to Re-Sign DT Jordan Phillips, Per Multiple Sources

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero broke the news that Buffalo plans to re-sign Phillips. Pelissero posted, “Reunion: Veteran DT Jordan Phillips visited the #Bills today and is expected [to] sign with the team later this week, per source. It’ll be the fourth stint in Buffalo for Phillips, 32, who has played parts of five seasons there.”

Last offseason, Phillips moved on to sign with the New York Giants in April before getting traded to the Dallas Cowboys in August. However, the 2015 second-rounder eventually made his way back to Buffalo last season. He appeared in seven regular-season matchups and all three playoff games.

The veteran appeared in 51 games with the Bills between three previous stints with the franchise. He’s recorded 90 tackles, 13.5 sacks, one interception, a forced fumble, and a forced fumble recovery in his regular-season appearances.

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The Bills Plan to Sign Jordan Phillips To The 53-Man Roster: Whose Spot Is He Taking?

Numerous analysts initially assumed Phillips would be signed to the practice squad. The Buffalo News’ Katherine Fitzgerald posted, “A league source confirmed @TomPelissero’s report that the Bills expect to sign Phillips this weekWould expect practice squad for the veteran DT.

The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia posted, “My sense is that this could be a practice squad move for the soon to be 33-year-old DT. The Bills will have some veteran P Squad spots open.

However, Syracuse.com’s Ryan Talbot posted, “Per source, Jordan Phillips is expected to be signed to the #Bills’ 53-man roster, NOT the practice squad, later this week.” SI’s Alex Brasky noted, “First impression is this is bad news for DeWayne Carter.

Defensive tackles expected to make the 53-man roster prior to the Phillips news included Carter, Ed Oliver, DaQuan Jones, T.J. Sanders, and Deone Walker. WGRZ’s Jon Scott asked, “Whose spot is he taking? Not Ed Oliver. Not TJ Sanders. Not Deone Walker. DeWayne Carter after just a season after being 3rd round pick or DaQuan Jones, who has been running with 1st team all summer? Very interesting.”