The Bills have made a habit of building up their offensive line, and Sedrick Van Pran-Granger sits right in the middle of that conversation this summer. Buffalo just locked up right guard O’Cyrus Torrence on a four-year extension, giving the team three of its five starters on second contracts, with Alec Anderson also in the mix to compete for the left guard job.
Van Pran-Granger, though, is one of the younger pieces trying to hold his ground in a crowded room. The Bills took the center/guard out of Georgia in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, No. 141 overall, and he’s now entering the third year of his four-year rookie deal. That contract is worth $4,375,252 overall, with a 2026 cap hit of $1,163,813 if he makes the 53-man roster and a dead cap charge of $177,626 if he’s released.
His 2025 season was shaped first by health and then by limited opportunity. A calf strain wiped out his preseason work, but he got back for the regular season and was active for 15 games.
He did not dress for Buffalo’s Week One win over the Baltimore Ravens or its Week Three win over the Miami Dolphins. When he did get on the field on offense, the chances were few and far between: 22 offensive snaps spread across wins over the New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, and Carolina Panthers.
He also started the regular-season finale in place of a resting Connor McGovern. Most of his work came on special teams, where he logged 57 snaps.
Buffalo’s interior line picture is crowded in ways that matter for Van Pran-Granger. He is one of three players listed with a center/guard designation, alongside Alec Anderson and Connor McGovern.
Lloyd Cushenberry is listed strictly at center, while Bruno Fina, Da’Metrius Weatherspoon, Nick Broeker, Ar’Maj Reed-Adams, and O’Cyrus Torrence are listed at guard. Austin Corbett carries the guard/center label, and Tylan Grable and Jude Bowry are listed as tackle/guard.
This summer, Van Pran-Granger has been healthy and has worked with the second-team offense at times. He’s also taken some first-team snaps while McGovern has dealt with an injury, and Cushenberry has gotten first-team work in McGovern’s absence, too.
That’s where the real pressure starts to build for Van Pran-Granger. He has looked solid in limited work, but the Bills also have a backup center option in Cushenberry who brings a lot more starting experience. That kind of resume changes the math quickly, and it makes Van Pran-Granger’s roster spot less secure than it might have seemed not long ago.
McGovern’s hamstring injury only adds to the uncertainty. He picked it up at the Return of the Blue and Red practice, and while the strain is not believed to be serious, head coach Joe Brady has not been willing to say much about the timeline.
That leaves some doubt about McGovern’s availability for Week One against the Houston Texans on September 13. If there is any real question there, Buffalo would probably prefer Cushenberry at center in that game rather than Van Pran-Granger.
Van Pran-Granger has been a player to watch since his arrival, and that hasn’t changed. But if he’s going to stick, he’ll need a strong preseason to prove he belongs in a battle that could decide one of the most important backup jobs on the roster.
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For a team that always seems to find competition at the bottom of the roster, that kind of showing only makes the next few weeks tougher. The Bills do not have many easy answers with the 53-man deadline approaching, and performances like these can force the staff to keep digging, especially when younger or less established players keep turning preseason snaps into real arguments for a longer stay in Buffalo. [Read more 🡒]