Taron

Johnson

The Bills announced on Friday that they would be releasing Johnson, who joined the team as a fourth-round pick in 2018. With that move not yet official, the team has now decided to trade Johnson to the Bills for a sixth-round pick while also sending a seventh-rounder of their own back to Vegas. Johnson is a former Second-team All-Pro who has played almost exclusively in the slot. The veteran corner earned a PFF coverage grade of 66.8 last season while allowing 34 receptions for 332 yards and two touchdowns on 51 targets. Johnson joins the Raiders with two years remaining on his deal and should help bolster a defense that ranked 25th in points allowed last season.

A former fourth-round pick by the Bills back in 2018, Johnson is now set to hit free agency. The veteran corner, who has spent nearly all of his career in the slot (4,527 slot snaps per PFF), started eight games for the Bills last season, earning a PFF coverage grade of 66.8 while allowing 34 receptions for 332 yards and two touchdowns on 51 targets. A change in defensive scheme likely led Johnson’s release, but the decision to cut him will also clear over $8.6 million in cap space if he is designate as a post-June 1 release. A former Second-team All-Pro in 2023, Johnson will turn 30 this offseason and should have plenty of suitors on the open market.

Bosa dealt with a hamstring injury earlier this month. It is unclear whether this one threatens his Week 17 availability. The Bills were also without S Jordan Poyer (hamstring) and DT Jordan Phillips (ankle) on Wednesday. Defensive players who were limited include CB Taron Johnson (quad), S Cam Lewis (hamstring) and LB Shaq Thompson (neck).

He downgraded to a limited session on Friday after going full on Thursday. Buffalo used Cam Lewis as their slot replacement against the Dolphins in Week 10, but Lewis (calf) is also questionable. Tampa should be able to get some explosives by isolating their best on Buffalo’s slot corners. Johnson hasn’t played since Week 8.

Cornerbacks Taron Johnson (groin) and Christian Benford (groin) will also be questionable after being limited in back-to-back practices to close out the week. Jones was also limited on Thursday and Friday after being a DNP on Wednesday, and appears to have a chance to play after missing last week’s game. With DE A.J. Epenesa (concussion) and LB Shaq Thompson (hamstring) already ruled out for Sunday’s game, the Bills will hopefully get some good news on Jones and Johnson when inactives are announced before kickoff.

This is unfortunate. Last week, Bills slot CB Taron Johnson was sidelined by a groin injury of his own. Benford nursed a groin injury earlier this season, but has not missed any games. Bills EDGE Joey Bosa is playing through a wrist issue and is visibly bothered by it in-game. He should be on the field in Week 10, unless he is downgraded tomorrow, though. The Bills face the Dolphins this weekend. Bills DT DaQuan Jones (calf) also resumed practicing today.

The restructured contract converted $1.75 million of base salary into a signing bonus, generating as much in cap savings as the trade deadline looms. Johnson remains sidelined and without a return timeline but the move could allow the Bills to make a splash before Tuesday’s trade deadline.

Johnson popped up on Friday’s injury report with his injury and was eventually scratched from Sunday’s game against the Chiefs. McDermott said after the game that Johnson had “no chance to play in the game” before later adding that the team is “taking it one week at a time.” Johnson is one of the league’s top slot corners and has played 269 defensive snaps in the six games he has appeared in this season, per PFF.

More bad news for a Bills defense that just lost defensive tackle Ed Oliver for the season. Johnson picked up a groin injury in practice this week, which means the Bills will be without one of the league’s best slot cornerbacks and also without Shaq Thompson, who has been perhaps their best linebacker this season. It’s an overall upgrade to the Chiefs’ passing game over the middle of the field.

The thing you really don’t want when you’re playing against this version of the Chiefs is a late-breaking cornerback injury. Johnson appears to have hurt himself in practice and he seems to be at the very least truly questionable here, perhaps on the pessimistic side of it. Cam Lewis would see more nickel snaps if Johnson can’t go.