One week ago today, the Bills acquired former Steelers cornerback Darius Slay on waivers. Slay has still not reported.
Per agent Drew Rosenhaus, Slay remains undecided about playing again in 2025. For now, Slay is spending time with his family and taking a break from football.
The Bills placed Slay on the reserve/did not report list. They have yet to announce any plans beyond that. By all appearances, they’re waiting to see what Slay does.
On Wednesday, coach Sean McDermott referred any questions about Slay to G.M. Brandon Beane.
The Bills could, if they choose, pursue the recovery of a portion of the $8.74 million signing bonus Slay received from the Steelers as part of his one-year deal. They also could release him, which would subject him to waivers again.
The last time around, the Eagles also made a claim. The Bills had priority. Some in league circles believe Slay had hoped to get back to Philadelphia. When Slay appeared on a podcast last week, he wouldn’t say whether he would have reported to the Eagles, if they had secured the balance of his deal.
The Bills needed a win last Sunday to keep serious hopes of winning another AFC East title alive and quarterback Josh Allen came up big in the snow to get it for them.
Cincinnati took a 11-point lead over Allen and the Bills in the first half before the 2024 MVP was able to get things going. Allen threw touchdowns in the second and third quarter as the Bills kept pace with the Bengals and then ran for a 40-yard score to cut the deficit to three points. The Bills took a lead on an interception return by Christian Benford and Allen then helped put the game away with his third touchdown pass of the day.
Allen finished the afternoon 22-of-28 for 251 yards and he ran for 78 yards in the 39-34 win.
On Wednesday, the NFL announced that Allen has been named the AFC offensive player of the week for that effort. It’s the third time he’s taken those honors and the 18th time in his career.
The Giants are signing veteran punter Cameron Johnston to their practice squad, Dan Duggan of TheAthletic.com reports.
Johnston, who entered the NFL in 2017, was most recently with the Bills earlier this season.
The Giants’ regular punter, Jamie Gillan, is dealing with an undisclosed injury, per Duggan, which prompted a workout of several veteran punters.
The Wednesday injury report will provide more insight into Gillan’s injury.
Johnston has remained a free agent since the Bills released him from injured reserve on Nov. 13. A lower-leg injury in Week 4 sidelined him.
Johnston began his NFL career as an undrafted free agent, signing with the Eagles. He played three seasons in Philadelphia and was on the Super Bowl LII team.
In 2021, Johnston signed with the Texans and led the league in punting yards (4,108) and total punts (88). He played two more seasons in Houston before joining the Steelers in 2024.
In three games with the Bills this season, Johnston averaged 44.0 yards per punt with a net of 37.9.
We’ve reached the point in the regular season where teams can officially turn an eye toward January.
The Rams, Patriots, and Broncos are the three clubs that can clinch a postseason berth this week.
For Los Angeles, it’s simple: Win and you’re in. The Rams can only secure the NFC’s first playoff spot, with the NFC West still up for grabs between L.A., Seattle, and San Francisco.
Things are a little more complicated for two AFC teams.
New England will win the AFC East and secure a home playoff game with a victory over Buffalo. The Patriots can also clinch a postseason berth with a tie and a Chargers loss; a tie with a Texans loss or tie; a tie with a Colts loss or tie; or a tie with a Jaguars loss. New England would also clinch a berth if Houston loses or ties and Indianapolis loses or ties as long as both games don’t end in a tie.
Denver cannot clinch the AFC West on Sunday, but can clinch a postseason berth with a win. If Denver ties, a Chargers loss, or Jaguars loss, or Texans loss or tie, or Colts loss or tie would also secure a playoff spot. Additionally, the same New England clinching scenario with a Houston loss or tie plus an Indianapolis loss or tie, as long as both games don’t end in a tie, applies to Denver.
The Patriots will play the Bills at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, while Broncos-Packers and Rams-Lions both have a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff time.
No teams have clinched berths in the postseason yet, but the Patriots will have a chance to do that and more in Week 15.
If the Patriots complete a sweep of their two games against the Bills by beating them at home on Sunday, they will clinch the AFC East title for the first time since the 2019 season. That would be a significant accomplishment in head coach Mike Vrabel’s first year, but Vrabel said at a Monday press conference that he won’t be making the possibility of celebrating with commemorative merchandise a focus of the team’s preparation this week.
“No, I don’t use the hat and T-shirt,” Vrabel said, via a transcript from the team. “We’re just trying to play for the championship that we have available this week, and I think it’s a great testament to our players that have put us in this position to be able to do that. Again, that’s not going to be easy. This is a very good football team. There’s a reason that they’ve won this division five years in a row. A lot of respect for them. They’re never out of it, never down, and they may be down, and just like last week, it’s a football team that understands that somebody’s going to make a play. And then the quarterback is going to give them a chance to the very end.”
Ending the Bills’ run at the top of the AFC East would be a significant development for New England, but it doesn’t sound like there’s going to be much talk about anything but the next game in New England this week.
