Why Ryan Fitzpatrick Should Be Signed By The Buffalo Bills
Nobody wanted to see the Buffalo Bills in the offseason before the Super Bowl, but that's the case this postseason, after losing in the AFC Divisional round to the Kansas City Chiefs.
There's a lot of uncertainty with the Bills roster and coaching staff going into the spring. Sure, Josh Allen isn't going anywhere for a long time. Stefon Diggs, Tre'Davious White, Dion Dawkins and Matt Milano aren't going anywhere; and head coach Sean McDermott isn't going anywhere either.
But the Bills have to fill gaps on the coaching staff, like filling the offensive coordinator position after Brain Daboll left for the New York Giants. It appears the Bills prefer quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator Ken Dorsey to take that position, but the Giants OC position is available for him as well.
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As for the roster, the Bills have some major unrestricted free agents to deal with.
Among the unrestricted free agents:
- Jerry Hughes
- Mario Addison
- Emmanuel Sanders
- Ike Boettger
- Levi Wallace
- Isaiah McKenzie
- Harrison Phillips
- Taiwan Jones
Backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky is also a free agent, and general manager Brandon Beane said they would love Trubisky back, but they obviously don't know.
If you look around the league, there are many teams who could use a quarterback like Trubisky. Teams that might not have a super high draft pick, but also won't be comfortable drafting and starting a quarterback in 2022.
Teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, The Washington Football Team, Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints could all conceivably sign a veteran quarterback to compete for a starting job.
Trubisky is only 27, too, so he might have a market this spring.
If Trubisky leaves, the perfect backup quarterback for the Bills is a fan-favorite...Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick spent the 2021 season with The Washington Football Team, but only played the season opener (missed the rest of the season with a hip injury).
Fitz is scheduled to be a free agent in 2022, and while he's 39 years old and could decide to retire, if he comes back next season, then ending his career in Buffalo would be a perfect cap to his career.
It's safe to assume that he would love to compete for a starting job, but it might be tough to do, considering his age and other options teams might have. He would be a fantastic backup and still has game left.
There would also be zero clamoring for him to take Josh Allen's job, since Josh has cemented himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Fitzpatrick's favorite place to play was his time in Buffalo -- he has not hid that fact, and has also said that his favorite fanbase is Bills Mafia.
The odds say it won't happen, but the Bills should absolutely kick the tires on Fitz to come back and end his career in Buffalo in 2022.