Buffalo Bills Salary Cap Update Points to 'Aggressive' Offseason

The Bills will have the opportunity to add a few important pieces once free agency begins.

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane on the field before a game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Highmark Stadium. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

The NFL has officially released its salary cap figure, placing teams’ spending limit at $301.2 million for the 2026 season.

That puts the Buffalo Bills about $7.9 million over the cap entering the upcoming campaign. While at face value that may make it seem as if the Bills may have trouble filling their many roster holes throughout the offseason, Mike Ginnitti of Spotrac believes there is plenty of room for Buffalo to be aggressive over the next several months.

‘A good sign’

Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Alec Anderson (70) blocks against Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt (90) during the third quarter at Acrisure Stadium. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Bills have made some moves leading up to free agency, including re-signing Alec Anderson, Phidarian Mathis and Sam Franklin, along with a couple of other supplementary additions over the last few weeks. They also announced a critical restructuring of right tackle Spencer Brown’s contract, the first of what is likely to be many maneuvers set forth as cap-saving measures.

Now, as the calendar turns to March, Ginnitti believes it’s time for the Bills to start thinking about being assertive in the weeks to come.

“They’re in the negatives heading towards the big week here, so there’s work to be done,” he said regarding the final week-plus until free agency opens on Mar. 11. “They’re adding, not subtracting, right now, I think that’s a good sign. So it seems like things are fairly stable.”

He added, “And there are certainly ways to open up some cap space and be somewhat aggressive when March hits. Not uberly aggressive, but that’s sort of the cost of doing business at this level.”

Big needs

Buffalo Bills coach Joe Brady speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Many significant names have been floated as potential free-agent options for the Bills, but as Ginnitti mentioned, Buffalo must continue to shave off dollars before they’re able to go out and spend on some difference makers that sit on the open market. Josh Allen’s contract will likely need to be restructured, Dawson Knox is a candidate to take a pay cut, while a few other players may be released.

The most notable holes for the Bills at this point include wide receiver, edge rusher, safety and linebacker. As Buffalo transitions into a new era with head coach Joe Brady at the helm and Jim Leonhard leading the defense, they’ll be looking for some new faces to guide them through such a big shift.

While the team doesn't plan to enter a rebuilding phase, the Bills must retool as they prepare for what should be a challenging 2026 slate. Buffalo has the eighth-most difficult strength of schedule for the upcoming NFL season based on their opponents' winning percentage (.528) from this past '25 campaign, and they better be ready to compete.