Bills fans know that most of their starting roster is set in place. The linebacker job that was held by Tremaine Edmunds will be up for grabs at St. John Fisher College and the training camp practices should also help clear up the battle for Buffalo’s No. 2 cornerback job.
Those are the roster battles on everyone’s radar, but what is a roster battle that isn’t being talked about enough? Matt Parrino and I recently discussed this topic on an episode of Shout! Here was our response.
Wide receiver No. 3
Dalton Kincaid is expected to play a big role as a rookie and could take over the 65 targets that went to Isaiah McKenzie one year ago. While Kincaid is projected to line up in the slot at times, who is in line to be the actual No. 3 wide receiver behind Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis?
The three candidates for the job appear to be Khalil Shakir, Deonte Harty and Trent Sherfield.
Shakir played 25 percent or more of the team’s offensive snaps in the final three games of the regular season. In the playoffs, Shakir saw his offensive snaps increase to 41 percent against the Dolphins and 29 percent against the Bengals. He was productive in both outings posting a 3-51 stat line against Miami and a 2-40 stat line against Cincinnati.
Harty signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with Buffalo in the offseason. The Bills seem to have a role in mind for Harty, but his size could limit him in terms of being the true No. 3 receiver. At 5-feet-6-inches tall and 170 pounds, Harty is going to have to show that he can stay on the field. He has had success in the past, but missed significant playing time last season due to a turf toe injury. In 2021, Harty finished the year as Pro Football Focus’ 4th highest ranked receiver in terms of an overall grade (87.8) and was 5th in the league in yards per route run.
Sherfield joins the team coming off of a career-best season with the Miami Dolphins where he caught 30 passes for 417 yards and two touchdowns playing alongside Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. He’s also made a good first impression in Buffalo with Josh Allen praising the veteran.
“I’ve loved what I’ve seen from Trent so far,” Allen told the media. The dude works extremely hard. He’s one of the hardest-working guys on the team. Doesn’t complain about anything. He’s rolling right now.”
Also working in Sherfield’s favor is his blocking ability. The wide receiver finished as Pro Football Focus’ No. 1 receiver in blocking among receivers.
