The Buffalo Bills have turned over their safety room during the last few years. Gone are mainstays Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer. While the team might have a few familiar faces this season, there are some new friends set to join the fray, as well.
In today’s installment of “91 players in 91 days,” we discuss a veteran safety trying to make the roster after spending two years with an AFC rival.
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Name: Geno Stone
Number: 25
Position:
S
Height/Weight: 5’11”, 207 pounds
Age: 27 (28 on 4/19/2027)
Experience/Draft: 7; selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the seventh round (No. 219 overall) of the 2020 NFL Draft
College: Iowa
Acquired: Signed with Bills on 3/16/2026
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Stone signed a one-year deal worth $1,402,500 overall, of which $187,500 is guaranteed in the form of a signing bonus. As a vested veteran, the total amount of Stone’s base salary ($1.215 million) becomes guaranteed if he’s on the 53-man roster for Week One. Buffalo can release Stone before the regular season begins, however, and carry only the total of his signing bonus as a dead cap charge for the year. Thanks to the veteran’s salary benefit, his cap hit sits at a lower number than the total value of his contract if he makes the club—$1,262,500.
2025 Recap: Stone played his second season with the Cincinnati Bengals, and he set a career-high on that bad Bengals defense with 104 tackles. He also notched his first two career sacks, totaled two interceptions, and had four pass breakups, four tackles for loss, and four quarterback hits. He started all 17 games for the second consecutive season, and he played in all 17 games for the fourth straight year. He tied for second on the club in interceptions and was fourth on the team in total takcles. However, Pro Football Reference also credited him with a team-leading 26 missed tackles, an absurd total that matched the total of Buffalo’s top five safeties from last season combined. He also allowed a career-worst 106.6 quarterback rating when he was the closest man in coverage, allowing a 65.3% completion rate on 49 targets. He allowed four touchdowns and a career-worst 469 yards passing, as well.
Positional outlook: Stone is one of six players listed at safety on the current roster. Cole Bishop, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Wande Owens, Damar Hamlin, and Jalen Kilgore are the others. Sam Franklin Jr. and Jordan Hancock are listed at defensive back, but both players have played safety in the past.
2026 Offseason: Stone is healthy and he has participated in offseason work to date.
2026 Season outlook: Stone is likely veteran insurance for the summertime, and while it’s possible that a change of scenery could lead to better play, I’m not sure I see a clear pathway to the roster for him in Buffalo. Gardner-Johnson and Bishop are the likely starters, and the Bills are going to keep Franklin and Hancock, as well. I’m really excited about Kilgore, as he has plus athleticism and seems like the perfect fit for new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard’s more aggressive scheme. Stone could be battling with Damar Hamlin for a single spot on the team, a fourth safety gig that will likely be inactive on game days. It’s also possible that the Bills part ways with both Stone and Hamlin, choosing instead to use Kilgore and Hancock as the backups.
Some of this may depend on what they see Hancock’s role being in this new defense. If he’s more of a slot corner than he is a safety, then the Bills will likely try to keep either Hamlin or Stone. If they view Hancock as a safety, then I think the veterans are out and the youth movement in the defensive backfield commences.
Regardless, it’s going to take a strong summer for Stone to show that he belongs on the roster, as we are a long way from his seven-interception 2023 campaign. I view him on the outside looking in.
