All-Pro safety Jordan Poyer will attend the Bills’ mandatory minicamp this week, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Poyer reports to camp still seeking a contract extension as he enters the final year of his current deal. Schefter reports that the Bills have been in communication with Poyer’s agents, Drew Rosenhaus and Kyle Lincoln, regarding the situation.
Bills GM Brandon Beane said last week that he assumed Poyer would be reporting to mandatory minicamp because he hadn’t heard anything otherwise. It turns out he was right, and that’s a good thing for the chemistry of the Bills.
Instead of any holdout drama surrounding star players sitting out mandatory camp, like we are seeing now with names around the league like DK Metcalf and Terry McLaurin, Poyer doesn’t want to cause a distraction while trying to negotiate a deal where he is paid like an All-Pro. The Bills are on a Super Bowl mission and can’t afford any distractions, and I think Poyer understands this.
Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier wasn’t worried about his All-Pro safety after Poyer didn’t show for OTAs in recent weeks, saying, “I think Jordan is in a good place mentally… he’s still staying in touch with his teammates…”
Poyer is now 31 years old and coming off a first-team All-Pro selection. In 2021, he finished tied for the most interceptions (5) in the league’s No. 1 pass defense. He started 16 games and recorded 9 passes defensed, 3 sacks, and 8 tackles for loss. He finished second on the team in tackles behind Tremaine Edmunds.
Poyer has played in 127 games in his career and started 89 games. 79 of those starts came with the Bills. He has 20 interceptions, 42 passes defensed, and 7 forced fumbles in his career.
According to CBS Sports, the most comparable players to Poyer in terms of age, experience and production (for salary comparison) are likely Harrison Smith, 33, who signed a 4-year, $64M extension ($16M per year) with the Vikings in 2021; and Quandre Diggs, 29, who signed a 3-year, $40M extension ($13M per year) with the Seahawks this offseason.
Poyer doesn’t want any drama – he just wants to be paid like an All-Pro safety as he should be. Bills Mafia is now playing the waiting game, hoping that when his pay day comes it will be from the Bills organization.
