Grading The Signging: Bills bring back key piece on one-year deal, but his role is about to look a lot different
A key depth piece returns to Buffalo.
The Buffalo Bills have been busy over the past 24 hours, signing multiple players to one-year deals. It started with an onslaught of signings, including former Buffalo Bills wide receiver Trent Sherfield. In the same announcement, the team brought in some depth and competition for offensive lineman Alec Anderson with the signings of Lloyd Cushenberry and Austin Corbett.
It didn’t end there, as the team made the official announcement that they would be bringing back safety Damar Hamlin on a one-year deal. Although his role is about to look a lot different under the new defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard.
Damar Hamlin is back in Buffalo on a one-year deal
Hamlin was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He played college at the University of Pittsburgh, which had some fans thinking that he would be going home to play for the Steelers. But alas, Buffalo snagged him in what should be a veteran minimum contract. The details of his one-year deal haven’t been available at the time of publication.
The safety played in five games for Buffalo in 2025, registering just one combined tackle. Over his five-year career, he’s started in 27 games in 53 games played with nine passes defensed, one fumble recovery, one and a half sacks, and 185 combined tackles.
Everyone remembers the traumatic incident where Hamlin nearly lost his life on the football field against the Cincinnati Bengals. Since then, Hamlin has been a vocal advocate for CPR across the country. He’s a shining light in the NFL, and I personally am glad he’s back in Buffalo.
Safety has been a focal point for Buffalo this offseason
Buffalo spent the offseason bolstering the safety room, specifically bringing in safeties C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Geno Stone. It’s going to be Cole Bishop and Gardner-Johnson taking the starting roles, with players like Stone and Hamlin providing meaningful depth.
For all of his faults, I think having his presence in the room is invaluable, and he’s more of a break-in-case-of-emergency type player at this point. We know what we’re getting with Hamlin if he’s forced in the lineup. Again, this move is purely made with depth in mind. With that, I’m a fan of the signing.
At this stage of the offseason, that’s exactly what Buffalo should be doing: raising the floor of the roster while leaving the ceiling intact.
Hamlin may not be a headline-grabbing move, but he’s a trusted veteran, a proven professional, and someone who understands what it takes to wear that jersey. If the Bills are going to make a serious run in 2026, it’s these types of under-the-radar decisions that quietly help hold everything together.
Grading the signing: B
Buffalo Bills News
ESPN hits the Bills where it hurts the most just weeks ahead of the NFL Draft
Not the best news for Bills Mafia.
