Buffalo Bills Coach Welcomes And Added…
The Buffalo Bills added more talent and depth to their defensive line on Thursday signing DeShawn Williams to a one-year deal. Williams, 31, most recently played with the Denver Broncos (2020-2022) and Carolina Panthers (2023), but his story is one of perseverance.
Now a member of the Bills, here is what fans need to know about Williams.
Williams is very familiar with former Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson.
Williams and Lawson both attended D.W. Daniel High School. Shortly before signing with the Bills, Williams shared a picture of them following a game.
The duo also shared time on the field at the collegiate level with Clemson.
If Lawson were to re-sign with the Bills, the two players would be reunited for a third time.
Williams entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2015. He joined the Cincinnati Bengals and spent his first season on the team’s practice squad. He appeared in four games in 2016 and recorded 0.5 sacks and four QB hits. The following season, the Bengals waived him and placed him on their practice squad.
In 2018, Williams had practice squad stints with the Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts. The Broncos would sign Williams in 2019, but he was cut in late August.
Williams was CFL bound with the Calgary Stampeders in 2020, but the season was postponed due to the pandemic. After being cut nine times at this point (and 10 times in total in his career) in the NFL and not getting a chance to play in the CFL, it seemed like Williams’ pro career could have ended.
With the CFL not playing in 2020, Williams worked in a warehouse loading items into Amazon and UPS trucks.
Williams discussed the topic in an interview on the Panthers’ website last season.
Also during Phase Three, teams are allowed to host one mandatory minicamp for veteran players. Mandatory minicamps are restricted to a three-day maximum.
Rookie development football programs also have a set of very specific guidelines. During this program, which can begin on May 13 and last up to seven weeks, team’s are forbidden from holding activities on weekends. The only exception to the “no weekends” rule is a single post-draft minicamp. The rookie minicamp is required to be held one of the first two weekends following the draft.
One other type of minicamp is allowed for select teams. Teams that have hired a new head coach for the 2024 season are permitted to have one voluntary veteran minicamp. This voluntary camp cannot take place before the third week of a team’s offseason workout program, but, also, must be held before the NFL Draft.
The rules for the NFL’s offseason workouts are detailed under Articles 21 and 22 in the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which expires at the end of the 2030 league year and is available on the NFL Communications website.
The Buffalo Bills plan to begin their offseason training program on Monday, April 15 and host their veteran mandatory minicamp June 11 through 13. In between, they will have OTAs on May 20-21, May 23, May 28-29, May 31, June 3-4, and June 6.
Buffalo Bills fans reacted to the news that the team is planning to raise ticket prices for the upcoming season. The hike in ticket prices comes following a March in which the team cut several starting players because of cap space concerns.
“According to the Buffalo News, the season ticket prices are going for about $15,000 to $50,000 per seat. These are the top seats meaning the suites and club seats. This is a huge increase from the current prices for fans. This does not come as a huge surprise as the new stadium will be much nicer. However, this will stop many of their biggest and longest fans from being able to purchase the season tickets each year.”
Fans were already upset when the team had what many described as a “fire sale” before free agency.
The Bills released Jordan Poyer, Siran Neal, Deonte Harty, Nyheim Hines, and Tre’Davious White to get out of the red before the start of free agency.
Bills fans might be paying higher ticket prices for a worse product. Here are the best takes on Bills fans reacting to the increase in prices.