Buffalo Bills restructure CB's contract, pointing to trade coming before deadline

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The Buffalo Bills are making moves.
Well, sort of.
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Leading into the NFL trade deadline, which is set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday, the Bills have cleared some cap space by restructuring the contract of nickel cornerback Taron Johnson.
Per ESPN’s Field Yates, Buffalo converted Johnson’s base salary into a signing bonus, which created $1.75 million in cap relief. The move puts the Bills at about $3 million in available space under the salary cap, which may be enough to swing a trade for a player at one of many positions of need.
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The Bills restructured the contract of CB Taron Johnson by converting base salary into a signing bonus, a move that created an extra $1.75M in salary cap space.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) November 3, 2025
With injuries all over the roster, there are countless options for the Bills to consider before the trade deadline, with the defensive tackle position, edge rusher, cornerback, safety and wide receiver among those most widely discussed over the past several weeks.
While Buffalo remains cash strapped, this is one of a few minor moves General Manager Brandon Beane has the ability to make before Tuesday at 4 p.m. to help give the Bills some wiggle room to make a trade.
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Beane has not been shy of making trades to give the Bills a boost down the stretch run, including a season ago when he sent a third-round pick to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Keep your notifications on, Bills fans. A trade is coming.
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Alex Brasky is editor of Bills Digest and host of the Buffalo Pregame podcast. He has been on the Bills beat the past six seasons and now joins Sports Illustrated hoping to expand his coverage of Buffalo’s favorite football team.
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