Bills’ most surprising 53-man roster cut before 2025 NFL season

Even though the roster is under wraps, the Buffalo Bills still might be looking for a boost. They want to iron out any rough spots because this could be a tremendous season. But tough choices had to be made on the 53-man roster, and here is the Bills’ most surprising cut before the 2025 NFL season.

After reaching the AFC Championship game in 2024 and falling just short to the Chiefs, the Bills enter this year with the hope of finally getting back to the Super Bowl. They have one of the league’s elite quarterbacks and a lot of good players on both sides of the football.

Included in the strength mix are Tre’Davious White and Christian Benford at cornerback, and Taron Johnson at nickel. Ja’Marcus Ingram and Dorian Strong also add to the mix, and that left Dane Jackson on the outside looking in.

Bills surprising cut CB Dane Jackson

A five-year veteran, Jackson started 14 games for the Bills in 2022 and defended 12 passes with two picks. However, he had only six starts in 2023 and played for the Panthers last year with three starting assignments.

His release caught several observers off guard, according to billswire.com. It’s especially surprising with first-round pick Maxwell Hairston landing on IR.

“If we go back to the start of camp, Jackson is a surprise player left off the roster,” Nick Wojton wrote. “He has experience working in Buffalo’s defense, but he never made an impact. So much so, despite injuries hitting the cornerback position, Jackson is still gone.”

But it’s possible Jackson could still wind up in the team’s plans, according to nytimes.com.

“Although Jackson struggled at times this summer, the Bills may try to bring him back to their practice squad,” Joe Buscaglia wrote.

The Bills are in a tough spot at cornerback because, along with Hairston, White is also dealing with an injury. The question marks are loud, according to democratandchronicle.com.

“I don’t really know where we’re at in terms of the health of those guys,” McDermott said after the preseason finale in Tampa. “I think we’ll know a little bit more when we get back in a day or two, and we’ll go from there.”

Bills hoping back end will stay solid

The Bills actually have a mid-league ranking for their secondary, according to Pro Football Focus.

“The Bills are a case study of how volatile secondaries can be from one year to the next,” John Kosko wrote. “They entered 2024 with three excellent cornerbacks but faced questions at safety. Christian Benford was once again phenomenal, but Taron Johnson battled injuries. Benford’s elite play anchors the group.”

Of course, that was before Hairston’s injury and White’s setback. Hairston will miss at least four games. His absence opens the door for Ingram and Strong, according to ESPN.

“Still a ways away,” McDermott said on Hairston's ramp-up last week. “Just from what I heard … [head athletic trainer Nate Breske] is really trying to still get a feel for exactly what we're dealing with in terms of when we can start to push a little bit more without affecting the healing of it. I get the vibe that we are moving in the right direction.”

Will the Bills be able to overcome injuries?

Things are also a little murky for White, according to nytimes.com.

“We’re rehabbing him as much as we can,” Bills GM Brandon Beane said. “Tre’s got a great attitude, he’s attacking it, and really, other than that, we’re just going to take it day by day, I guess, and kind of see where that goes. I’m sure as we get into next week, Wednesday, I think, is the first day that an injury report will be due. So we’ll see what it is. Whether he can practice any or not, or what that looks like at that time.”

As for Hairston, Beane said it will take some time.

“I would love for the docs in the medical team to say, yes, he is ready full go, but he’s not,” Beane said. “And now you’re talking about, even if you’re ready to ramp him up soon, he hasn’t played football in over a month. So you’re just trying to be smart. Let’s give him every chance. Let’s give him another, basically a month to get that much further healed, and we’ll rehab the heck out of it.”

And that makes the move to jettison Jackson even more surprising.