Potential targets for Bills as NFL trade deadline nears: What they could bring to the team

ORCHARD PARK — At some point prior to 4 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, general manager Brandon Beane might make a trade aimed at finalizing how the Buffalo Bills roster will look as they make their push toward Super Bowl 57.

UPDATE:Bills trade for RB Nyheim Hines, send Zach Moss to Colts

Then again, maybe nothing will happen at the NFL trade deadline. After all, coach Sean McDermott said Monday, “I’m confident in the guys we have in our locker room. I'm sure he’s busy with looking into things and seeing how we can best help our football team moving forward like we always do.”

But given the reports that Beane has already kicked the tires on running backs Alvin Kamara of the Saints and Christian McCaffrey, formerly of the Panthers who was eventually traded to the 49ers, it seems Beane is on the prowl.

Those are only the calls Beane has made that we know about; you can bet there have been others, and the question becomes, can he acquire a player who can truly be a difference-maker for a team that is 6-1, leading the AFC, and showing no tangible signs of slowing down?

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Running back is an interesting area to be exploring for Beane. Devin Singletary has been a good soldier since he arrived as a third-round pick in 2019, and he has given the Bills pretty consistent performance. However, two things have never changed with Singletary: He lacks that ability to grind out tough yards in short yardage situations behind an offensive line that doesn’t often succeed in that area, and he also falls short when it comes to explosive plays. His longest career run is 51 yards back in 2020.

Behind him, rookie James Cook hasn’t officially entered the circle of trust as a go-to runner/receiver, and Zack Moss is buried in the witness protection program from which he may never emerge unless Singletary or Cook get hurt.

So, is there a player out there who Beane can bring in that will be better than any of those three? Probably, but at what cost?

Here are four running backs who could fit the bill:

1. Possible Buffalo Bills trade target: Josh Jacobs

If the Raiders are willing to listen, Beane should be trying his hardest to pry Jacobs away because he is exactly the type of back the Bills covet. He is a sturdy between the tackles runner who can pound for yards, but also has the agility and speed to bounce out and make an explosive run.

Now in his fourth season, Jacobs — the Raiders first-round pick in 2019, two rounds ahead of where Singletary was picked that year — has rushed for 3,763 yards (4.4 per carry) and 34 touchdowns, and has caught 129 passes for 904 yards. This season, as the Raiders have stumbled to a 2-5 start, he’s averaging 5.6 yards per attempt and has six touchdowns.

Las Vegas declined the fifth-year option on Jacobs’ rookie deal meaning he’ll become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. And there were rumors back in the summer that he was on the trade block, though first-year coach Josh McDaniels squashed those.

Still, given the fifth-year option decision, it seems unlikely Las Vegas will re-sign him, so he might be a perfect trade candidate if the Raiders can get back an asset or two, especially since it looks like they’re going nowhere in the playoff chase.

Buffalo could perhaps send a fifth-round pick in next year’s draft, and throw in Moss as a warm body who could play for the Raiders this season and next. Right now, the Bills have a pick in all seven rounds, and they have an extra fifth-rounder from the Cody Ford trade to Arizona late in training camp.

2. Possible Buffalo Bills trade target: Alvin Kamara

Now that the Saints crushed the Raiders 24-0 Sunday and improved to 3-5, meaning they are right in the thick of the race for first place in the weak NFC South, they probably aren’t willing to deal Kamara. Had they lost that game, this might have been an interesting decision.

Kamara, when healthy, is one of the best dual threat backs in the league and he showed that against Las Vegas as he had 62 yards rushing, 96 yards receiving and all three New Orleans touchdowns.

For his 5½-year career, he has averaged 103 yards from scrimmage per game and has scored 70 touchdowns, so he would certainly be a dynamic weapon to add to Josh Allen’s arsenal.

The difference between Kamara and Jacobs is that Kamara is much more expensive as he carries a $16.3 million cap hit in 2023 and $27 million in 2024 and those are numbers the Bills would really struggle to absorb, especially for a running back which is why it surprises me that Beane would call on him. Also, the Saints are apparently asking for a McCaffrey-type draft pick package which Beane surely shouldn’t consider.

3. Possible Buffalo Bills trade target: David Montgomery

Like Jacobs, he’s in the final year of his rookie contract and the 2019 third-round pick would certainly bring the power element to the Bills offense at 5-foot-11 and 224 pounds.

He’s averaging 3.9 yards per rush including 3.15 after contact and his 26 forced missed tackles is 10th-most among all backs. The Bears lead the NFL in rushing, but Montgomery is third on the team behind primary back Khalil Herbet and QB Justin Fields.

The Bears are already in sell mode as they traded star linebacker Roquan Smith to the Ravens on Monday in an effort to collect draft picks for 2023 to start putting more pieces around Fields. Montgomery probably isn’t part of their plan and could fetch a late-round pick.

4. Possible Buffalo Bills trade target: Kareem Hunt

He asked the Browns to trade him in training camp when he didn’t get a contract extension and they refused. Now, perhaps they’ve changed their mind on a player who will be a free agent at the end of the season.

Hunt was a dynamic player as a 2017 rookie for the Chiefs when he rushed for 1,327 yards and added 455 yards in receptions. But since then, he has been a big disappointment and of course, he also carries baggage that is tough to ignore, his beating of a woman that was caught on video in a hotel in 2018.

He was immediately cut by the Chiefs, signed by the Browns, and served an eight-game suspension in 2019. Upon returning, he’s been an underwhelming performer in Cleveland, though some of that has to do with poor quarterback play from Baker Mayfield and now Jacoby Brissett, plus the fact that Nick Chubb is the lead back.

Putting him in the Bills offense might be exactly the spark he needs to rejuvenate his career and could allow him to show something as he heads into free agency. It seems like he wouldn’t cost the Bills much more than a sixth- or even a seventh-round pick, that is if they would be willing to overlook his off-field incident.

Other positions Buffalo Bills could be interested in as NFL trade deadline nears

McDermott has every reason to like his team as is, but one area that might be worrisome is safety where Jordan Poyer may again be sidelined, this time with an elbow injury. McDermott didn’t provide much of an update Monday on his status for this week, but there’s certainly a chance Poyer could miss the Jets game.

Micah Hyde is already out for the season, so if Poyer is out, the Bills would be down to Damar Hamlin and JaQuan Johnson as starters, with only Cam Lewis — normally a slot corner — in reserve. They also have Jared Mayden on the practice squad, but he’s not an option for a Super Bowl contender and really, neither is Lewis.

Beane may not have a choice but to find a safety and another Raider, Johnathan Abram, would make sense. He was first-round pick in 2019 by the Raiders (three slots behind Jacobs) and he’s been a three-year starter who does his best work as a box safety, similar to the role Poyer has in the Bills defense.

Another possibility would be Deshon Elliott who was a sixth-round pick of the Ravens in 2019 who joined the Lions this season and is in the final year of a very cheap rookie contract. He has been one of the more reliable players on a terrible Detroit defense, a sturdy 6-foot-1, 210-pounder who has 39 tackles this season.

Could the Buffalo Bills be looking to trade for Jerry Jeudy or another wide receiver?

There sure is, especially in the slot. The Bills looked stacked heading into the season with Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis on the outside and Isaiah McKenzie, Jamison Crowder and Khalil Shakir working from the inside.

But through seven games, the three slot receivers have combined for just 30 catches for 342 yards and four TDs, with McKenzie providing the bulk of that. Crowder may be out for the season with an ankle injury and like fellow rookie Cook, Shakir isn’t being fully trusted at this point.

The one name that is certainly hot is Denver’s Jerry Jeudy, a 2020 first-round pick who has struggled to make an impact. But the Broncos winning Sunday over Jacksonville in London — Jeudy had six catches for 63 yards and a TD — might push them away from the bargaining table. Also, the reported ask for Jeudy has been high, so he probably isn’t moving.

Brandin Cooks is another hot commodity with several teams apparently interested in making a deal for the Texans wideout who has 605 catches for 8,271 yards and 47 touchdowns in his nine-year career. He would be an ideal get for a Super Bowl contender like Buffalo.

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana.To subscribe to Sal's new twice-a-week newsletter, Bills Blast, please follow this link: profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Potential Buffalo Bills targets as NFL trade deadline nears