The Buffalo Bills overhauled their offense last offseason, parting ways with their top two wide receivers and letting a number of other veterans walk in free agency.
The team responded with one of the best offensive seasons in franchise history, setting an all-time team record with 525 points and advancing to the AFC Championship game. But general manager Brandon Beane believes there could still be a missing piece to the offense, one the team could target this offseason.
Bills Need Field-Stretching Wide Receiver
Speaking to reporters at the NFL combine this week, Beane said the team could use more speed in their wide receiving corps. The team lacked a true field-stretcher, focusing on size and ability to catch contested balls.
Beane hinted that they could still find more speed to complement quarterback Josh Allen, who just became the first Bills player to earn league MVP honors since running back Thurman Thomas in 1991.
“Do I think (a lack of speed) cost us winning the Super Bowl? No,” Beane said, via the Democrat & Chronicle. “Could we improve it? Yes. We’re always looking to add speed, but they’ve got to be football players, too. So I’m never going to turn down speed. I promise you, I’m not. You want speed at as many positions as you can. But football, as we know, is not played on a track, and so it’s the whole thing. We are evaluating the football player first, and then, ‘What else do they bring to the equation?’ “
Beane identified speed as more of a want than a need this offseason, pointing out that the team averaged more than 30 points per game in 2024.
“Maybe you could say we didn’t have enough speed … we averaged over 30 (points per game),” Beane said. “You know what I’m saying? If we were, you know, the 20th-ranked offense or something, and (lack of speed) was constantly showing up, I would probably agree with that.”
New Approach Worked for Buffalox
The Bills overhauled their offense last year, trading top receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans and letting No. 2 Gabe Davis walk in free agency. The team adopted what it called an “everybody eats” approach in 2024, spreading the ball to a wider group of pass-catchers and going into the season without a true No. 1 receiver.
The Bills had nine players record 250 or more yards receiving on the season, led by Khalil Shakir with 76 receptions for 821 yards and four touchdowns. The Bills rewarded Shakir this week with a new contract for four years worth up to $60.2 million, including $32 million in guarantees.
As Anthony Miller of SI.com noted, the new deal makes Shakir the team’s top wide receiver, though he suggested they could use another high draft pick to add more talent to the group.
“By default, Shakir will become the No.1 receiver unless Keon Coleman emerges in his sophomore year as the top guy,” Miller wrote. “Tight end Dalton Kincaid gives the team another reliable option in the passing game, and the Bills have plenty to work with between those three.”
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