WGR SportsRadio550 has a Youtube channel and I’ll link the video. Starting at the 3 minute mark they start talking about Beane, Beane’s recent “aggressive as ever” statements, fan expectations, and reality.
Host: “He can’t trot out there on Wednesday and say ‘I tried’. He’s got to know the fans have had enough of ‘I tried’ even if it is a midlevel move.”
Sal C (during his response): “It (limited cap space) does give Brandon Beane an out, so to speak….we don’t have much to work with here.”
The problem for Beane is that Beane is the reason that Beane doesn’t have much to work with. Beane handed out the deals that left the Bills with bottom 5 in cap space for the last half decade and project the Bills to be bottom 5 in cap space for the next half decade as well.
I do think the hosts are right that Beane will swing a minor trade for a defender, most likely a safety who fits in the existing cap space. While I have been calling for Beane to be fired for quite some time, I am actually on board with not kicking the salary cap can any farther down the road by extending Dion Dawkins. The team has about $50 million in dead cap this year due to deals handed out to Joey Bosa, Matt Milano, Taron Johnson, Daquan Jones, and Conner McGovern. Extending Dawkins risks adding to future dead cap.
If “in the mix” is all Bills fans get on Tuesday at 4:01 pm Eastern, I suspect Beane to sign Brandon Aiyuk (after his release from San Fran as precisely no team is going to send the 49ers a draft pick AND absorb the ~$6 million cap hit AND add a problematic personality in the building) or Tyreek Hill on a prove it/chase a ring contract. Beane would be gambling – aggressively, you might say – that the Josh Allen dominated locker room could withstand the diva attitude/bad human tendencies either WR brings and that either WR would be capable of elevating an already top tier offense in spite of injury history.
Either that or sign a guy off his couch and call it good.