Getty Former Chiefs wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Buffalo Bills are adding more depth to their wide receiver corps, with an insider reporting that the team signed veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
ESPN insider Adam Schefter reported on May 14 that the two sides agreed to a contract after Valdes-Scantling had visited Buffalo on Monday.
“Bills are giving former Chiefs WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling a one-year deal worth up to $4.5 million, including a $1.125 million signing bonus, per source,” Schefter wrote on X.
Former #Chiefs and #Packers FA WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling is expected to sign with the #Bills, per me and @TomPelissero. He’s on a visit there today and the two sides are closing in on a deal.
The Bills had some major departures from their wide receiving corps earlier this offseason, shipping Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans and losing No. 2 receiver Gabe Davis in free agency. They have made moves to add new talent, and Valdes-Scantling will serve as a reliable target with Super Bowl experience.
Bills Add Big Target to Their Offense
This is not the first time the Bills had shown interest in Valdes-Scantling. As Kyle Silagyi of SI.com noted, the Bills had taken a close look at the wide receiver prior to the 2018 NFL Draft.
“USF wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling may be a target for the team, as according to NFLDraftDiamonds, Buffalo wide receivers coach Terry Robiskie recently flew to Florida to hold a private workout with the 6-foot-5 target,” Silagyi reported for USA Today’s Bills Wire at the time.
Since coming into the NFL in 2018, Valdes-Scantling has 186 catches for 3,155 yards and 16 touchdowns. In his last two seasons with the Chiefs, Valdes-Scantling made 63 receptions for 1,002 yards and three touchdowns while helping the team win back-to-back Super Bowls.
Silagyi wrote that Valdes-Scantling could be an important addition to the wide receiver room in Buffalo.
“Valdes-Scantling not only brings tenure, playoff experience, and championship pedigree to the Bills’ receiving corps—he also brings speed, an element general manager Brandon Beane largely neglected to add in the offseason,” Silagyi wrote for SI.com. “He ran a 4.37 40-yard dash at the 2018 NFL Scouting Combine, and though he’s lost a step as he’s aged, his game is still largely predicated on speed.”
Bills Rehaping Receiving Corps
The Bills will have a new look at receiver in 2024, losing both of their top pass-catchers but adding new talent through free agency and the NFL Draft. The team signed speedy veteran Curtis Samuel and used their top draft pick to add Florida State wide receiver Keon Coleman.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane spoke highly of Coleman, saying his background as a football and basketball star will add a new element to the offense.
“He’s got a great feel, an instinctual feeling and I think some of that comes from even his basketball background,” Beane said, via the team’s official website. “Like this guy’s not just a high school basketball player, like he could have played major college hoops. So that shows you his athletic ability, you know we like guys that play multiple sports.”
Coleman added that he’s excited to join the team and play with quarterback Josh Allen.
“He can really throw the ball, he can spin it, he has pretty much everything you want out of a quarterback and everything breaks down and he can continue to make the play and keep it alive,” Coleman said.
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