Five Buffalo Bills With Most to Prove as Offseason Training Program Begins

As the Buffalo Bills’ 2026 offseason program kicks into high gear, several players will be fighting for assumed roles on both sides of the ball.

With a new head coach and a new defensive coordinator at the helm, it will be critical for the Bills to take significant steps forward at a number of key positions, which will throw a few who currently hold starting jobs into the fire. At the same time, many who have previously served in reserve roles will now have a chance to work their way up the food chain.

The closer it gets to training camp, the hotter the competition for meaningful playing time will become. Here are five players under the most pressure to prove themselves with Organized Team Activities (OTAs) right around the corner.

WR Keon Coleman

After a tumultuous season in 2025, Coleman will enter this year’s training program on the hot seat. There has been rampant discussion throughout the offseason regarding his role in 2026, with many projecting the Bills will move on from their former second-round pick before the regular season begins.

If Coleman is to stick around and be a key contributor for the team moving forward, his quest to do so will begin with simply proving he can be punctual and relied upon to fulfill his responsibilities, including meetings, etc. Next will come his ongoing development on the field, which has been a slow go since he entered the league.

After the addition of DJ Moore, the Bills suddenly have another option to plug in as their top outside pass catcher. Whether or not Coleman, the team’s leading X receiver from a season ago, will maintain a spot in the pecking order remains to be seen and will be decided by how he performs over the next few months.

CB Maxwell Hairston

The Bills are counting on Hairston to become a surefire starter opposite Christian Benford for years to come. However, coming off an injury-plagued rookie year, Hairston must first show he can stay on the field. Then comes his performance, which was also hot and cold during his first professional season.

One thing working to Hairston’s advantage as he seeks to lock down a starting role is that Buffalo doesn’t have another reasonable option, as it currently stands two weeks before the draft. Beneath him on the depth chart is 2025 sixth-round pick Dorian Strong, whose future remains uncertain, along with the likes of MJ Devonshire, Te'Cory Couch and Daryl Porter Jr.

However, the Bills could very well decide they need more depth to compete with the former first-round pick, which would create an interesting situation entering training camp.

OL Alec Anderson

When the Bills lost David Edwards to the New Orleans Saints in free agency, many believed Anderson would seize the starting left guard job. But since Buffalo brought in veteran Austin Corbett on a free-agent deal, Anderson suddenly has competition for a role with the first-team offense.

Anderson has been a good soldier for the Bills, transforming from the team’s jumbo tight end into its top backup at various positions along the offensive line. His presence in the locker room is also of great value, as he has transitioned into a high-energy source for a team hoping to become more spirited under first-year head coach Joe Brady.

With that said, Anderson’s spot on the depth chart will come down to offseason and preseason performance. He will be provided every opportunity to win the job, but also every opportunity to give way to Corbett in this positional battle.

LB Terrel Bernard

The Bills have yet to address the linebacker position in free agency, but you can bet your bottom dollar they will do so before taking the field for training camp this summer. That should place Bernard’s starting role at risk, as the oft-injured former third-round pick underperformed even when he was healthy enough to be on the field a year ago.

For a player seemingly on the decline, he must prove he can get and remain healthy while also performing at an adequate level that justifies his presence in the starting lineup. One element that may give him a leg up in his quest to maintain his role as a starter is his experience as the team’s “green dot” linebacker.

Buffalo’s other expected starter, Dorian Williams, does not have that experience. While the team could draft someone like Georgia LB CJ Allen to fill that role, they may also be inclined to keep Bernard around as they transition to a new defensive scheme.

S C.J. Gardner-Johnson

Safety is a key position in Jim Leonhard’s new defense. While Gardner-Johnson appears to be first in line as Cole Bishop’s running mate in the back end, the job won’t be handed to him. Particularly considering the plethora of options Buffalo has after addressing the position this offseason.

The list of the Bills’ current safety depth chart is packed with fellow free-agent addition Geno Stone, the freshly re-signed Damar Hamlin, 2025 fifth-round pick Jordan Hancock and there's a chance a high-end draft pick enters the fold in late April. Getting this position figured out will be one of Leonhard’s primary objectives, and we’ll see if Gardner-Johnson can lock things down with his new team.

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