How the Bills New Cornerback Contract Extension Impacts the Team
The Buffalo Bills extended the contract of yet another one of their key playmakers. The team and Christian Benford agreed to a four-year, $76 million extension. By locking up their top cornerback, the team will make it easier to get back to playing elite defense which they had become accustomed to with Sean McDermott as the coach. This contract ties Benford with Jaylon Johnson for the 13th-highest-paid cornerback on a per-year basis, making it a great deal for the Bills at a discounted price.
This Benford extension is only the most recent extension that general manager Brandon Beane finalized this offseason. Since late February, the team has agreed to contract extensions with four other players. Khalil Shakir, Terrel Bernard, Greg Rousseau and Josh Allen all signed contract extensions within the past few weeks. With all this money being shelled out, there are questions as to how the team will free up cap space for the future, but Beane worked that out as well. On March 12th, Ed Oliver restructured his contract to save just over $10 million in 2025 cap space and Matt Milano will also take a three million dollar pay cut for this season.
When it comes to Benford as a player, he deserves this contract due to his exceptional play for the Bills. After selecting Kaiir Elam with their first-round pick in 2022, it was a letdown to see him not pan out. However, Benford quickly took over the role of number one cornerback as he’s started in 29 games the past two seasons. Though it was a tall task to replace Tre’Davious White, who had been the premier corner on the Bills for seven seasons, the former Villanova Wildcat has done a pristine job. In his career, Benford has accumulated five interceptions, 25 passes defended, and 142 tackles. The only thing stopping Benford from becoming a top-five cornerback is his health as he was out for the AFC Championship game with a concussion and has previously missed time due to knee, hamstring, and hand injuries.
This extension also opens up the conversation about who will be playing on the opposite side of Benford for the upcoming season. Rasul Douglas’ contract expired which leaves a question mark at the second outside cornerback spot. The team recently signed Dane Jackson, who played his first four seasons in Buffalo before playing last year in Carolina, but he’s not an ideal CB2 at this point in his career. The Bills have also been linked to several cornerbacks in the draft. Could the Bills use their first-round pick on Jahdae Barron, Maxwell Hairston, Azareye’h Thomas, or Trey Amos to fill the need? Only time will tell, but it will be an interesting situation to watch in Buffalo.
