3 Free Agents Buffalo Bills Can Realistically Sign in Critical Offseason

With the Super Bowl in the rearview mirror, it's time for the Buffalo Bills to hit the ground running this offseason.

However, that won't be easy. Buffalo sits at $7.4 million over the salary cap with 26 pending free agents, but there are still opportunities to improve the roster by targeting other teams' free agents.

High-profile wide receivers like Jauan Jennings and Alec Pierce will be too expensive, as they'll be commanding more than $20 million per year. With that in mind, Buffalo will have to find buy-low options wherever it goes like it did last offseason.

Assuming the Bills make moves that free up about $39 million in cap space, here are three free agents they could realistically sign, along with contract ideas based on projected market values from Spotrac.

No. 1 — LB Devin Bush (two years, $18 million)

Devin Bush has experienced a rollercoaster career but is coming off his best season yet. He recorded 125 tackles, eight passes defended and three interceptions, returning two for touchdowns, with the Browns. All were career highs.

The 10th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Steelers, Bush enters free agency with momentum that should benefit his next team. The Bills could use him to help them shore up a run defense that ranked fifth-worst in the NFL last season.

A do-it-all linebacker, the Michigan product could adequately replace Matt Milano or Shaq Thompson, and then some, if general manager Brandon Beane chooses to let one of them walk.

Bush will only be 28 at the start of the season, so the Bills would be getting him in the prime of his career.

No. 2 — S Kam Curl (three years, $30 million)

While second-year safety Cole Bishop excelled in coverage in 2025, the Bills lacked a physical presence in the box who could also cover well. They'll need a safety who's not Taylor Rapp, who was atrocious before injury, or Jordan Poyer, who'll be 35 next season, starting alongside Bishop in 2026.

Kam Curl provided that balance during two stellar seasons with the Rams, totaling 201 total tackles, 14 passes defensed and three forced fumbles. His track record should earn him a better payday than other safeties on the market.

The sixth-year veteran ranked as the sixth-best safety in run defense this past season with an 84.7 Pro Football Focus grade. He held his own in coverage as well, earning a 66.1 grade, which is above average.

Curl will be 27 at the start of the season, so like Bush, he would give Buffalo a player squarely in his prime.

No. 3 — NT D.J. Reader (one year, $4 million)

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With new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard transforming the Bills to a 3-4 defense, a true nose tackle is needed, especially if Deone Walker isn't up to the task despite a fantastic rookie season and if DaQuan Jones isn't re-signed.

D.J. Reader has been one of the NFL's most reliable run-stoppers. His 6-foot-3, 330-pound frame and 10 seasons of experience are exactly what teams look for at the position.

Reader spent the last two seasons with the Lions, and while he didn't fill up the stat sheet (51 tackles, four TFLs and three sacks), his presence helped free up teammates like Aidan Hutchinson and Alim McNeill to make plays.

Reader will be 32 when the 2026 season begins, but a 1-year contract would negate all risk. It's similar to when the Bills inked Larry Ogunjobi to a 1-year deal that flopped.