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The Buffalo Bills made an addition to their secondary on roster cutdown day, pulling off a rare in-division trade with the New York Jets to land rookie cornerback Brandon Codrington.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on August 27 that the Bills agreed to a swap of late-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. Codrington had initially signed with the Jets after going undrafted out of North Carolina Central.
With the move, the Bills add depth to their secondary while adding another option at kick returner.
Brandon Codrington Stood Out in Preseason Play
Sal Maoirana of the Democrat & Chronicle noted that the trade could answer the unresolved question at kick returner for the Bills. The team had difficulty settling on a full-time kick returner last season, with running back Ty Johnson leading the team with eight returns and wide receiver Khalil Shakir returning another five kicks.
Both Johnson and Shakir are expected to take on bigger roles in the offense this season, leading to an open competition this preseason to find the new return specialist. Maiorana noted that Codrington has a strong track record in the return game.
“As a senior in 2023 he returned 14 punts for 275 yards and two touchdowns of 81 and 85 yards. He also had 20 kickoff returns for 358 yards,” Maiorana wrote.
“With the Jets, he had a 63-yard kickoff return against the Panthers and totaled six punt returns for 89 yards, meaning he was more productive than anyone the Bills tried on returns.”
The Bills had been using rookie cornerback Daequan Hardy as the primary return specialist through three preseason games this year, but Maoirana noted that Codrington could now add some competition for the role.
The position is expected to take on more significance in the coming season after the NFL adopted rules encouraging more kick returns.
As Maiorana noted, the trade between division rivals was a rarity. The last time the Bills and Jets came together on a trade was 1987, when the Bills sent defensive lineman Don Smith to the Jets in exchange for a conditional draft pick.
Bills Trimmed Down Their Secondary
The Bills started this offseason with some major changes in their secondary, releasing veteran cornerback Tre’Davious White and safety Jordan Poyer and allowing fellow safety Micah Hyde to hit free agency. Hyde hinted that he could still return to the team, with retirement as his only other consideration.
The Bills made another high-profile cut ahead of the league deadline for 53-man rosters to be completed on Tuesday. Former first-round safety Kareem Jackson, who joined the Bills in late July after injuries depleted their safety room, was also released this week.
The 36-year-old Jackson started 193 of 203 regular season games and appeared in eight postseason games throughout his 15-year NFL career. But Jackson ran into trouble in his last year in the NFL, Jon Heath of USA Today’s Broncos Wire noted, as he was suspended twice in 2023 and ejected from two games for unnecessary roughness. He was released by the Denver Broncos after the second suspension and finished the season with the Houston Texans.
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