One Buffalo Bills rookie has a golden opportunity to turn some bad news into good news
The Buffalo Bills learned on Monday they’ll be without CJ Gardner-Johnson for a game on account of a suspension. What if it is for the best?
What if I told you that bad news was actually good news for the Buffalo Bills?
The NFL passed down a one-game suspension for Bills safety CJ Gardner-Johnson on Monday, less than 24 hours after he spit on an opponent in Buffalo’s 33-30 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Not cool! The judgement from the league, paired with the team’s Week 7 bye, means the next time we’ll see Gardner-Johnson in the Bills’ secondary will be on November 9th on Monday Night Football against the Vikings. But the time in between? Consider that valuable time on task for rookie safety Jalon Kilgore. Perhaps the suspension will be one of the best things to happen to the Buffalo secondary when it is all said and done.
CJ Gardner-Johnson’s suspension opens the door for rookie Jalon Kilgore to seize an opportunity
Bills defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said the ejection on Sunday “put us in a really bad spot”. And, as Buffalo is finding out firsthand this season, it usually isn’t a one-time thing with Gardner-Johnson. The franchise is juggling a long-term and a short-term goal: competing for a championship in the endgame for both. But for Week 8 against the Baltimore Ravens, Gardner-Johnson’s contribution to both causes will be the same. None.
Enter Jalon Kilgore. Kilgore is a physically gifted safety prospect who Buffalo drafted in the 5th round of the 2026 NFL Draft. And he should be attacking the bye week and the preparation for Baltimore with unmatched intensity. Because if he makes good on his opportunity, there may come a point again where Gardner-Johnson is not able to be relied upon. Or, alternatively, his lack of reliability isn’t worth whatever extra contribution he could offer on his snaps in comparison to the young rookie.
This doesn’t happen if Kilgore doesn’t flash over the next two weeks. But Buffalo should be hoping that he does. Because it’s highly likely this won’t be the last time that Gardner-Johnson buts the Bills in “a bad spot”.
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