The Buffalo Bills made another tweak to their 91-man training camp roster, signing cornerback D.J. Miller Jr. and moving on from safety Wande Owens in a corresponding move, according to WGR550’s Sal Capaccio.
Miller arrives after spending the last two seasons in the UFL. In 2025, he played for the Michigan Panthers, then followed that with a 2026 season for the Columbus Aviators. The 5-foot-10, 193-pound defensive back put together a steady run in both stops, showing up with production in the tackling and turnover columns.
With the Panthers, Miller logged 29 tackles, including 17 solo stops, along with two interceptions and eight pass defenses across 10 regular-season games. He added nine tackles, eight of them solo, plus three more pass defenses in two postseason games. For the Aviators, he finished with 24 tackles, 20 solo, one tackle for loss, nine pass defenses and three interceptions returned for 39 yards in nine games.
Before his time in the UFL, Miller played at Kent State during the 2022 and 2022 NCAA football seasons. Over two seasons there, he started 19 of 23 games and piled up 109 tackles, 68 of them solo, with one tackle for loss, seven pass defenses and two fumble recoveries.
Owens’ departure closes the book on a player who had been viewed as one of Buffalo’s more intriguing under-the-radar names. Buffalo Rumblings’ Chris Trapasso called him his favorite under-the-radar story and believed he had a real chance to push for playing time in 2026. Owens, a former UDFA, had a productive rookie preseason in 2025 with five tackles in 45 exhibition snaps before an undisclosed injury led to his release at the end of camp.
He went unclaimed and reverted to Buffalo’s Injured Reserve for the rest of the 2025 NFL season. Physical Therapist and Doctor of Physical Therapy Kyle Trimble (@BangedUpBills) later shared information in January suggesting Owens had undergone an “ACL reconstruction.”
At Bills mandatory minicamp on June 9, Owens was seen wearing a heavy knee brace while going through drills. As of July 31, his status remains unclear, though there were no reports of him missing time during the first few days of 2026 training camp.
In Other News...
Bills Secondary Suddenly Has A C.J. Gardner-Johnson Concern
The Bills secondary had already been a point of interest this offseason with C.J. Gardner-Johnson joining the team on a one-year deal, bringing the kind of versatility and edge Buffalo hoped would sharpen the back end of its defense. But his recent exit from a game quickly shifted the conversation from fit and role to simple availability, as trainers and teammates surrounded him after he went down.
Gardner-Johnson was unable to continue and was carted off after an apparent issue with his right foot, leaving Buffalo with an uneasy wait on a player it had just added to help stabilize the secondary. For a defense that is still sorting out new pieces, the sight of a veteran defensive back going down like that is the sort of development the Bills can ill afford this early. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Suddenly Face A C.J. Gardner-Johnson Camp Concern
The Bills got a scare at training camp when safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson went down during a practice drill and had to be helped off the field. It was the kind of moment that can stop a camp session in its tracks, especially when a veteran defensive back is involved, and Buffalo immediately shifted into the cautious mode teams usually reserve for injuries that could alter the shape of a roster conversation.
For now, the early signs are at least somewhat encouraging, with teammates and staff indicating Gardner-Johnson was able to walk afterward and is going through the usual medical steps. Still, the club is waiting for more clarity before saying much more, and the next update will matter for a defense that has been counting on him to settle in quickly during camp. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Secondary Just Got A Scare It Could Not Afford
Training camp already has a way of sorting out the hopeful from the fragile, and Buffalo got a reminder of that when safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson went down during 11-on-11 drills. He suffered a lower-body injury, was helped off the field, and the Bills quickly shifted from practice mode to waiting mode as he was taken in for further evaluation.
The immediate concern was hard to miss: Gardner-Johnson was favoring his right foot and not putting much weight on it before heading to the locker room. Buffalo is now waiting on medical testing to learn how serious the injury is, a situation the secondary can hardly welcome with the season work already underway. [Read more 🡒]