The Buffalo Bills plans to cut ties with veteran star running back, Nyheim Hines. The team will move on and according to ESPN, they plan to release him sometime this week. They’re probably signaling that they’re willing to trade him if any team is interested in getting Hines in their backfield. Hines missed the entire 2023 season after suffering a torn ACL from a jet ski accident.
While he plans to reportedly pursue legal action against those who caused the accident, he will likely find himself on a new team. The Bills acquired Hines midway through the 2022 season from the Colts, who received Zack Moss and a conditional sixth-round pick. The veteran was mostly featured as a returner for the Bills, frequently returning a pair of kickoffs, including in the team’s Week 18 victory over the Patriots. Hines has rushed for 1,202 yards with 10 touchdowns and caught 240 passes for 1,778 yards.
The Bills will save $4.66 million against the salary cap if they release him. The Bills have an empty backfield now. This leads to speculation if the team will add another veteran this upcoming free agency. The Bills were over $40 million against the cap and the release of Hines will relieve some of it.
They restructured offensive lineman Connor McGovern’s contract and helped relieve close to $3.7 million in space. Hines still had a memorable 2022 season, returning two kickoffs for a touchdown. However, the Bills are going to need backfield help, they only have one other running back who’s under contract on the team. Buffalo brought a trio; Ty Johnson, Latavius Murray and Leonard Fournette but they’re heading to free agency.
The Buffalo Bills are expected to release RB Nyheim Hines.
This will save the team $4.6M cap space. pic.twitter.com/zCPLHexBjZ
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) March 4, 2024
Buffalo Bills Plans To Cut Ties With Veteran Star Running Back Nyheim Hines
Who the Bills May Acquire in Free Agency
Buffalo needs a roster refresh before the 2024 NFL season. They must bring in some new pieces to put around Josh Allen to contend with the Kansas City Chiefs and the AFC. It’s going to be a difficult situation since the Bills are over the cap and the execution of things done will be hard. The Bills now will probably lose Gabe Davis and Micah Hyde as well, which they can’t afford to bring back.
There are still plenty of available top free-agent running backs, but they’re out of the price range for the Bills. Names like Derrick Henry, Josh Jacobs and Saquon Barkley will be in talks with plenty of teams come free agency time. The Bills are going to have to get creative in figuring out how to clean up their cap salary situation to make proper additions. However, they can still sneak in signing a free agent running back on a cheap one-year deal.
This will most likely be the route that the Bills will have to go with. They could sign someone like Austin Ekeler from the Los Angeles Chargers or Alexander Mattison from Minnesota. The Bills have 10 NFL Draft picks if free agency isn’t successful.
Potential Landing Spots for Hines
The veteran back is going to need a reboot either way with a new team. With that, teams may still consider Hines if they don’t look into his injury too much. He may land on a contender as a No. 2 running back. However, the Chiefs are one destination he could land with if he’s lucky.
The two-time defending Super Bowl champs will likely need to find one additional back to provide support for Isaiah Pacheco. His skill set may make sense since Jerick McKinnon and Clyde Edwards-Helaire are becoming free agents. The Chiefs have $3.4 in available space so they could add him on a cheap deal for a year.
The Giants are another team that will have an empty backfield. They will look to revamp their rotation after Matt Breida and Barkley will hit the market.
