AFC Notes: Bills, Dolphins, Jets

Bills

Great players can have a cascading effect on teams, as not only is their production a huge lift but they can have a positive effect on raising the game of other players on the team. Not only were the Bills thrilled to land DE Von Miller for his impact on the field, they’re excited for the lasting impact he can have on the development of a trio of young pass rushers on the depth chart behind him. 

“No one in our locker room has had this career success that he’s had, so guys are gonna look to him and he’s not running from it,” Bills GM Brandon Beane told Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer of SI.com. “And he’s gonna bring that, and more specifically to those ends that we have, I think they will all benefit from it. So that’s also part of it. You’re getting a really good player, but we hope that when his time’s done, these guys have become better pass rushers than they would have without playing with him.”

Beane said the team needed to bolster their pass rush in order to take the next step, which is why they were in the market for a big-time pass rusher this offseason and settled on Miller.

“You gotta have a quarterback and then you gotta have a defense and more specifically ways to get after the quarterback,” Beane said. “How you gonna do that? I think you look at every year and you say, ‘Where did you come up short in the biggest games?’ And we had the No. 1 defense, but we weren’t always able to get the quarterback down. And we didn’t have a double-digit sack player on our team.”

Dolphins

Dolphins RB Chase Edmonds told the media that HC Mike McDaniel was one of the key factors in his decision to sign with Miami this offseason.

“I really believe that he’s a guru,” Edmonds said, via Daniel Oyefusi of the Miami Herald. “I was told he was a guru from players that I trust and that he was a really good player-coach as well. So, I’m kind of putting my faith in him. I feel like he’s a creative guy. He’s going to find a way to utilize all his players that we have on the offensive side of the ball, find a way to utilize what we’re all good at, what we’re best at, and keeping it at that.”

• The Dolphins contract with TE Durham Smythe is for two years at $7 million and includes $3.5 million guaranteed. It also includes a $1.5 million signing bonus and up to $250,000 in per-game active roster bonuses for 2023, as well as a $500,000 playtime-receiving yards incentive annually. (Aaron Wilson)

Jets

• Jets G Laken Tomlinson‘s three-year, $40 million deal includes $13.9 million fully guaranteed at signing and a signing bonus of $12.78 million. The deal has cap charges of $5.4 million, $17.4 million, and $17.3 million. (Rich Cimini)
• Mississippi State T Charles Cross says he has spoken with every NFL team but has had the most conversations with the Jets and the Giants. (Robbie Faulk)