The first time I remember knowing what a long snapper’s name was came during a 2002 NFC Wild Card matchup between the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers. As the Giants lined up to attempt a would-be game-winning field goal, their long snapper, Trey Junkin, fired a ground ball back to the holder, Matt Allen, and all hell broke loose.
For the Buffalo Bills, the long snapper has been a position many of us likely have taken for granted over the last two decades or so. Garrison Sanborn held the job
from 2009-2016, and the same man has held the position since the start of the 2017 season. It’s a tremendously precise job that starts off a rather mundane chain of events, but if it isn’t done perfectly, it could set the entire operation on fire.
In today’s installment of “91 players in 91 days,” we discuss the man who starts the reaction for each and every field goal or punt.
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Name: Reid Ferguson
Number: 69
Position: LS
Height/Weight: 6’2″, 235 pounds
Age: 32 (33 on 3/24/2027)
Experience/Draft: 10; signed with Buffalo following the 2016 NFL Draft
College: LSU
Acquired: UDFA signing
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Ferguson enters the second year of the four-year contract he signed prior to last season. That contract is worth $6.5 million overall. For the 2026 season, Ferguson’s cap hit is $1,602,500 if he makes the 53-man roster. If he’s released, the Bills will carry a dead-cap charge of $832,500 for the season
2025 Recap: Ferguson entered the season as the only player on the roster who predated head coach Sean McDermott, as he joined the team during former head coach Rex Ryan’s tenure. It was also the first season in Ferguson’s career where he did not register a tackle on special teams in either the regular season or the playoffs. He participated in every game, and he was 14th on the team in special teams snaps with 126.
Positional outlook: Ferguson is the only long-snapper on the roster.
2026 Offseason: Ferguson has participated in offseason work throughout the offseason, and thanks to Sean McDermott’s firing in January, he officially is the only Bills player to be on the roster before McDermott and after McDermott.
2026 Season outlook: Barring something crazy, Ferguson will be Buffalo’s long snapper again in 2026. There is an outside chance that the team does some roster gymnastics and releases him at the end of the preseason only to re-sign him after final rosters are set, but given the guaranteed money on his contract, I’d consider that unlikely. The only ways Ferguson isn’t a Bill this year are if he’s injured, or if he starts snapping the ball all over the place. I don’t think any of those things are going to happen, so I look forward to rooting for an easy guy to root for once again in 2026.
