The Bills made a quick move on the defensive line Tuesday, bringing in veteran tackle Greg Gaines and clearing a spot by releasing Tommy Akingbesote.
Gaines, 30, earned the deal after a tryout with Buffalo and now lands on the roster with plenty of experience behind him. He spent the last three seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he played in all 17 games last year and made four starts.
In that stretch, he totaled 23 tackles, added two sacks and finished with three tackles for loss. Before Tampa Bay, Gaines spent four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, and his career total now includes 38 starts.
For Buffalo, the fit is straightforward. Gaines gives the team another option at defensive tackle behind Deone Walker and figures to battle DeWayne Carter for the backup role, especially with Phidarian Mathis suspended for the first three games of the season. The Bills could also use Gaines in heavier defensive packages, with Walker and Ed Oliver sliding to defensive end on certain downs.
Buffalo wasn’t the only AFC East team poking around veteran help on Tuesday. The Patriots brought in two familiar names from the Bills’ 2025 roster for tryouts: defensive tackle DaQuan Jones and linebacker Shaq Thompson.
Jones, 34, would be heading into a reunion with head coach Mike Vrabel if New England signs him. The two were together previously with the Tennessee Titans.
Thompson, 32, was arguably Buffalo’s most effective linebacker last season, but durability has followed him as a question. He played 12 games for the Bills in 2025 after being limited to just six total games across 2023 and 2024. Thompson had said on social media that he hoped to return to Buffalo this season, but the team appears to be moving toward a younger and faster linebacker group in 2026.
In Other News...
Bills Suddenly Need Answers On Keon Coleman After Promising Start
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Colemans absence stood out even with several other players sitting out practice, since most of those absences are not believed to point to anything major. Still, the sight of Coleman dealing with an injury leaves Buffalo with an immediate question at a position where continuity matters, and the team will be watching closely to see how much of this is just a brief setback and how much more time it might cost him. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Stadium Reveal Just Put Fresh Heat On The Bills
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Clevelands concept is already being framed as a clean answer to one of the biggest fan complaints around modern builds, with reportedly unobstructed views from virtually anywhere in the building. For the Bills, who are trying to sell a future home that balances atmosphere, comfort and cost, that kind of rollout only raises the bar. The architectural details in Buffalo are still going to be debated, but the Browns just gave that debate a new reference point. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Fringe Standouts Just Made Buffalo's Roster Battle A Lot Harder
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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 🡒]