The Buffalo Bills won’t be acquiring DeForest Buckner after all the rumors.
The Bills’ defense has been an issue this season, and Buffalo has been linked to several players, including some on the defensive line. One of the names the Bills were linked to was Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.
However, two weeks before the deadline, the Colts moved Buckner, and it wasn’t to the Bills.
Buffalo Bills Miss Out on DeForest Buckner
Ahead of the trade deadline, one name that was linked to the Bills was Buckner, yet that won’t happen.
ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter broke the news that the Colts have agreed to trade Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers.
“Trade: Colts are sending three-time Pro-Bowl DT DeForest Buckner back to the 49ers, the team that made him a 2016 first-round pick before dealing him to Indianapolis in 2020, per me and @rapsheet. Now Buckner returns to San Francisco, fortifying the 49ers defensive line,” Schefter wrote on X.
Buckner going back to the 49ers made plenty of sense. But it is a big blow to the Bills’ hopes of overhauling their defense.
Buckner is a three-time Pro Bowler and would help bolster the defensive line. He’s in the final year of his two-year, $46 million deal with the Colts.
Buckner has recorded 31 tackles, 4 sacks, and 1 fumble recovery this season, showing he’s still an impact player. He would have been a difference-maker for the Bills defensive line, but Buffalo could now be looking elsewhere.
Buffalo Was Urged to Acquire Buckner
Ahead of the deadline, Bills reporters Matt Parrino and Ryan Talbot of NYUP.com believe the team should trade for DeForest Buckner from the Indianapolis Colts.
“I think DeForest Buckner is going to be available, and the thing with Buckner is that, to me, he would be Ed Oliver insurance,” Parrino said on Shout! Podcast. “What would a defensive line look like in the playoffs if Oliver’s healthy and you add DeForest Buckner? In the middle of that, you put Deone Walker, and on the ends of that, you put Greg Rousseau and Bradley Chubb.”
Talbot agreed with his co-host and thought Buckner was the perfect trade candidate for Buffalo.
“Buckner would be a dream if you are not adding someone on the back end of the defense, safety or linebacker,” Talbot added. “I know he’s 32 years old, but he’s a superstar-caliber player. He’s on an expiring contract, so I don’t think the cost would be crazy. Long story short, he’s still an impact player.”
However, the Bills missed out, and Buckner will be going to the 49ers, who look like legit Super Bowl contenders.
Buffalo Bills Lose Out on 3-Time Pro Bowl DT as Colts Trade Buckner to NFC Team