The Buffalo Bills are preparing for one of the most difficult parts of the NFL calendar: turning an entire offseason roster into the 53 players who will initially make up the 2026 team. And this year, cutdown day looks a little different.
NFL teams must reduce their rosters to 53 players by 6 p.m. EDT on Sunday, August 30, in a change from the Tuesday deadline we’ve grown accustomed to in recent years.
That means plenty of players we’ve watched throughout training camp and the preseason are about to
be released. But before Bills Mafia starts saying goodbye, remember: Cut doesn’t necessarily mean gone. For some players, Sunday will simply be the first step toward returning to Buffalo on the practice squad.
Buffalo can’t simply trim its roster to 53 and quietly move everyone else it likes onto the practice squad. For many players, there’s an important stop in between: Waivers.
Players with fewer than four accrued NFL seasons must pass through waivers after they’re released. That gives the other 31 teams an opportunity to claim them. If a player is claimed, he must join that team’s 53-man roster. If nobody claims him, he clears waivers and becomes free to sign with ANY practice squad.
Veterans with four or more accrued seasons don’t go through that same process at final cuts. Once released, they’re free to negotiate with another team immediately, or stay on with the Bills practice squad.
Waiver claims following this year’s final roster cuts are due by 1 p.m. EDT on Monday, August 31. Once those claims are processed, teams can begin assembling their practice squads.
Building Buffalo’s practice squad
Once the waiver process is complete, the Bills can begin filling their practice squad. Teams can carry 16 practice-squad players, and Buffalo can potentially have a 17th spot for an eligible International Player. That extra designation matters for my projection because Travis Clayton remains part of the International Player Pathway (IPP) program.
Despite what the name might suggest, the practice squad isn’t reserved entirely for rookies and developmental projects. NFL rules allow teams to carry up to six players with unlimited accrued seasons, giving Buffalo the flexibility to mix younger developmental players with experienced veterans.
That’s an important distinction.
A practice squad should contain players the Bills hope to develop for the future, but it also needs players who can help them right now. Because once the regular season begins, that practice squad becomes part developmental program, and part emergency supply.
When the Bills need reinforcements
This is where the modern practice squad becomes especially valuable. The Bills can elevate two practice-squad players for a game each week without permanently signing them to the 53-man roster. After the game, those players revert back to the practice squad without having to clear waivers.
An individual player can receive that standard elevation up to three times during the regular season. If the team wants him available for a fourth game, they have to sign him to the active roster.
It’s not necessarily about identifying the 16 best players who didn’t make the 53. Buffalo needs players who can step into different roles when injuries inevitably happen. That means positional depth matters. Special teams matter. Familiarity with the system matters. Versatility matters.
And there’s another wrinkle to all of this: The team isn’t guaranteed to keep those players all season.Yes, another team can take them. Practice-squad players aren’t permanently protected from the rest of the NFL.
Another team can sign a player from a practice squad, but there’s an important catch: that team has to sign him to its active roster. It can’t simply move him from Buffalo’s practice squad onto its own.
And that brings us to the players I think Buffalo will try to keep.
Looking at my final 53-man roster projection, these are the players I believe Buffalo could try to bring back:
- QB: Shane Buechele
- RB: Ian Wheeler
- WR: Trent Sherfield, Ja’Mori Maclin, Dante Pettis, Stephen Gosnell (if room)
- TE: Keleki Latu
- OL: Ar’maj Reed-Adams, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger (if not IR), Nick Broeker
- DL: Greg Gaines, Travis Clayton (IPP)
- EDGE: Mike Danna (if not traded), Andre Jones Jr.
- LB: Joe Andreessen (if not on 53)
- CB: Te’Cory Couch, Toriano Pride Jr.
Predicting a practice squad before roster cuts is very different from predicting the 53-man roster because a team doesn’t completely control the outcome. Some of these players first have to make it through waivers. Another team could claim one. A veteran could choose another opportunity.
Buffalo could also claim someone released elsewhere. And there could still be a trade or two that changes the equation.
Who could be tougher to keep?
The wide receivers immediately jump out. I have Sherfield, Maclin and Pettis projected to the practice squad, with Gosnell included if Buffalo can find room.
That’s a lot of receivers to keep, especially when the Bills will need enough positional balance on the practice squad to cover injuries elsewhere. As a vested veteran, Sherfield does not need to clear waivers. The Bills could elevate him for three weeks while evaluating other positions.
Then there’s Mike Danna, whose situation may never reach the practice squad. With Buffalo’s crowded edge group, Danna has been mentioned as a potential trade or release candidate heading into final cuts. If Beane can find a trade partner, getting something in return makes more sense than simply releasing him and hoping he’s available afterward.
Joe Andreessen is almost the opposite situation. He already knows Buffalo’s defense, offers linebacker depth and can contribute on special teams. That’s exactly the type of player who makes sense to keep close because his value isn’t limited to one role. There’s a good chance Andreessen is on the 53.
And then there’s Travis Clayton. Because of his IPP designation, keeping him doesn’t necessarily force Buffalo to choose between him and one of the other players on this list. That 17th spot gives the Bills another developmental opportunity without sacrificing one of the traditional 16.
Don’t forget about everyone else’s cuts
There’s one final piece of the practice-squad puzzle that’s easy to overlook. Buffalo isn’t only evaluating its own players this weekend. While we’re debating which Bills deserve to come back, Beane and his staff will be watching hundreds of players released by the NFL’s other 31 teams.
Someone Buffalo liked coming out of college could become available. A team could unexpectedly release a veteran at a position where the Bills need depth. Another player might simply fit Buffalo’s roster better than someone the Bills just spent the entire summer developing.
That’s why the first practice squad isn’t necessarily going to be made up entirely of Bills training-camp cuts. The practice squad isn’t really football’s waiting room anymore. It’s an extension of the roster.
