AFC East Notes: Bills, Jets, Patriots

Bills

Bills RB Christian Wade was a preseason standout in his first year in the NFL after coming over as a part of the International Player Pathway program. The former rugby player took his first carry 65 yards for a touchdown and spent 2019 on Buffalo’s practice squad with the 11th-spot exemption. Now in 2020, Wade has a chance to crack the final roster. 

“What a joy to have on our football team,” Bills HC Sean McDermott said via NFL UK. “He’s done a phenomenal job. The positive energy, the juice he brings to our football team, has been impressive. He’s made so many strides since coming to us a year ago — less than a year ago, in fact — the sky’s the limit. It’s a matter of the hard work he puts in. I know he’s a hard worker. We’ll see where he goes.”

• The Bills sent three different high-ranking members of their scouting department to watch Lenoir-Rhyne S Kyle Dugger. (Matthew Fairburn)
• Bills OL Cody Ford had his $28,075 fine for a blindside block in the playoffs reduced to a little more than $4,000. (Marcel Louis-Jacques)

Jets

• Ralph Vacchiano of SNY reports that some within the NFL expect Jets’ impending free-agent WR Robby Anderson to potentially be the “top target” at his position and has already priced himself out an extension with New York. 
• One AFC Scout believes Anderson’s size and speed make him a strong free-agent addition and teams around the league believe he could produce more in the right system: “I don’t know if he’ll ever be a No. 1 receiver, but he’s 6-3 and can fly. He’s not really just a deep threat anymore. He’s got the size and hands to do a lot more. He’s shown he can. He’s been about a 50-catch, 800-yard guy, but he’s only 26 and there’s a feeling that he can do a lot more in the right scheme.”
• Vacchiano’s sources expect Anderson to receive “significantly more” than $10 million annually. 

Patriots

Patriots QB Tom Brady‘s pending decision about where to continue his career doesn’t just affect him and the team. It would also presumably affect a number of New England’s scheduled free agents when deciding whether to re-sign with the Patriots, who traditionally have been able to secure a discount on veteran deals because of their status as annual contenders. Brady’s status leaves those players in limbo as well, though everyone understands the business side of the game. 

“(It’s) not weird,” Patriots S Patrick Chung said via NESN’s Zack Cox. “It’s just something we can’t control, and we can’t worry about things we can’t control. He’s a grown man. He can do whatever he wants to make sure his family and his foundation are set. That’s all I’m going to say about that. It’s out of my control.”