Indianapolis — According to a report by NFL Network reporter Mike Garofolo, Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley asked permission to seek a trade for him and his agent, and the team said go for it.
If a business partner can be found for the 33-year-old, it is most likely that the Bills will not bring back a player to replace Beasley as slot receiver. Compensation will almost certainly be in a draft pick or two, and probably nothing more than a fourth-round pick.
The Garofalo report indicated that if Beasley was not traded, the door would remain open for a possible return to Buffalo.
General Manager Brandon Bean said shortly after the Bills lost to Kansas City in the playoffs that he expected Beasley to return to play the final season of the four-year free agent contract he signed with the team in 2019.
But there was one comment that indicated a possible parting when he said, "Cole can still play and he will continue to play in this league."
Read between the lines there, and it wasn't exactly support to bring Beasley back in 2022.
At the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday, Bean was asked again about Beasley and indicated that nothing has changed in his approach.
"I haven't really spoken to Cole personally or anything," Bean said. "We'll take it day by day. We're going to have to make some tough decisions in the roster, whether it's straight cuts, restructurings, extensions. We're going to see a lot of areas with these guys as we go forward."
Beasley, of course, was already under the microscope as to a potential salary cap release because the bills would save $6.1 million and hit a dead cap of only $1.5 million.
Another option, as Bean said, would be to extend his deal so that the bills can reduce the cap hit for 2022. However, Bean also commented that he doesn't like to rely too heavily on extensions or restructuring - something he had to do with some player contracts last season due to the pandemic lowering salary limits - because it's going down the line. Below can cause problems.
"Reorganization is kicking the can down the road," he said. "It's an essential piece to operate and stay competitive, but the more you do it, the more money you bring down the road. A dollar you save today is a dollar you'll pay tomorrow." It's really the credit card philosophy, you're just pushing it."
And to do it with a player who will turn 33 in April, who averaged three yards less per reception, catching 82 passes in 2021, doesn't seem like a prudent move.
Thus, it was an easy decision for the Bills to allow Beasley to trade as they would receive something in return.
"We have to be creative, but Cap's strength is very important to me," Bean said. "As much as I can avoid it, I take it easier every year. I think our chance to find continued success is, the words we use here don't get into a pattern where you know, we We're going to restructure five people this year, seven people this year, and we'll just keep kicking it down the road."
Beasley has undoubtedly been a productive player for the Bills, and even as he has slowed down a bit, he was someone Josh Allen heavily relied on. In his three seasons at Buffalo, Beazley has 231 receptions for 2,438 yards and 11 touchdowns and another 25 catches for 268 yards in the postseason.
Last year, he became the face of the anti-vaccine crowd among NFL players, arguing vigorously about what he deemed were unfair COVID-19 protocols set by the NFL. Beasley eventually tested positive and consequently missed the game in New England on 26 December.
That was the day Isaiah McKenzie acted as a slot receiver and played the game of his career, catching 11 passes for 125 yards. Mackenzie is set to become an unrestricted free agent, and one of the Bills' major decisions will be whether to attempt to sign him again.
If Beasley is traded, bringing Mackenzie back will become a priority for the Bills.
"Sometimes Isaiah, when he had a chance, would pretend," Bean said. “I think with this kind of sport, Cole sometimes just took our running stuff out of the game and as we dragged our running game down a bit, we felt Isaiah really helped It's because the stuff behind the line of melee is hard for these linebackers or whoever is coming down to read the safety, and that's not a way we'd use Cole.