The Buffalo Bills have gone through the difficult task of reducing their active roster for the 2022 NFL season from 80 to 53.
It is one of the toughest days for NFL coaches and front office personnel, especially if many players deserve to be in.
Buffalo won’t have problems with their starters since they have been pretty much intact since last season.
However, choosing the players that will take the final spots might have been challenging.
In the end, as NFL insider Dov Kleiman shared, they decided to let go of some known veterans.
#Bills cut QB Matt Barkley, RB Duke Johnson, TE OJ Howard.
Placed star CB Tre’Davious White on the Reserve/PUP list.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) August 30, 2022
Kleiman tweeted, “#Bills cut QB Matt Barkley, RB Duke Johnson, TE OJ Howard. Placed star CB Tre’Davious White on the Reserve/PUP list.”
White is a valuable part of their secondary and placing him on PUP means that he will be out for at least four weeks.
Meanwhile, the Bills ended what could have been Barkley’s second stint on the active roster.
He played for the squad from 2018 to 2020, his seventh team in as many years.
After leaving the Bills, he tried out with the Tennessee Titans but was also released.
He eventually joined the Carolina Panthers but was waived after a month.
The Atlanta Falcons claimed him off waivers, and he stayed there until the end of the season.
Other Veterans Released By Bills
On the other hand, the Cleveland Browns selected Johnson in the 2015 NFL Draft after he became First-Team All-ACC at Miami.
He lasted four seasons in Cleveland before getting traded to the Houston Texans, where he stayed for two seasons.
He also had stints with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami Dolphins before joining the Bills during the 2022 offseason.
Finally, Howard signed a one-year deal with the Bills after spending five seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
While he won Super Bowl LV with the squad, he only played four regular-season games, finishing with 146 yards and two touchdowns.
In his final year at Tampa Bay, he had 135 yards and a touchdown in 17 games played.
NEXT: Why Didn't The Bills Want O.J. Howard?