The Buffalo Bills’ blocking game got a little more recognition this week, and it came for two names that don’t usually live in the spotlight.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell included center Lloyd Cushenberry III and tight end Jackson Hawes on his NFL All-Backup Team, a 53-man group built entirely from reserves. Barnwell limited himself to no more than two players from each team and framed the exercise around a simple idea: over a 17-game season, depth matters because injuries are part of the deal.
Cushenberry is heading into his first season with Buffalo after signing with the Bills this offseason. His 2025 season in Tennessee ended with a torn Achilles, which also led to his release, but Barnwell still sees a player with starting-level upside. Cushenberry had signed a four-year, $50 million free agent contract with the Titans in 2024, and Barnwell noted the position’s lack of depth before adding, "We'll give him a shot as our starting pivot in 2026."
Hawes, meanwhile, earned the nod a year after Buffalo took him in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He arrived with a reputation as one of college football’s best blocking tight ends, and that skill translated quickly once he got on the field for the Bills.
Barnwell pointed to Hawes’ blocking as a reason Buffalo could move away from the six-offensive-lineman looks it used with Alec Anderson in 2024 and lean more on traditional two- and three-tight end sets in 2025. Hawes also drew notice last month when NFL.com included him on its optimal 53-man roster built using the 2026 salary cap and actual contracts.
And while his blocking is still the headline, Hawes gave Buffalo something more as a rookie. He caught 84% of the passes thrown his way and finished with 16 receptions for 187 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
In Other News...
Bills Fans Wont Love This AFC East Pass Rush Rumor
The Bills head into 2026 looking fairly complete, with no obvious positional hole glaring back at them, though inside linebacker could still use some attention. Even so, the division always has a way of reshuffling the conversation, and a recent report out of Bleacher Report points to a possible move that would matter in Buffalo whether the Bills like it or not.
New Englands pass rush was uneven last season and took another hit when KLavon Chaisson left in free agency, which is why the rumor has traction in the first place. Arizona may also be open to listening if the return is strong enough, and the idea of a proven edge threat landing in the AFC East is the kind of development that can change how a division race feels before it even starts. [Read more 🡒]
T.J. Sanders Suddenly Faces A Bigger Bills Role Than Expected
T.J. Sanders arrived in Buffalo as a rookie defensive tackle in 2025, but his first season quickly became about survival and adaptability as injuries around the line and the Bills shifting needs pushed him into a wider job description. After an early injury and a stint on injured reserve, he worked his way back into the rotation and showed enough versatility to handle work at both tackle and end, a useful trait for a team that kept asking for answers along the front.
Now the bigger question is how that experience translates into Jim Leonhards new defensive scheme, where Sanders is expected to have a real role and could find himself lining up on the edge more often than initially planned. The Bills liked what they saw from his ability to move around, but the next step is turning that flexibility into something more stable, especially if he is going to hold up as a down lineman in a more demanding front. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Trade Idea Feels Tempting For All The Wrong Reasons
Even after adding DJ Moore in a trade and using a fourth-round pick on Skyler Bell, the Bills still have enough receiver intrigue to make almost any splashy idea sound worth a look. That is why a fresh proposal to bring in another big-name wideout has some appeal on the surface, especially for a team that has already been active reshaping its pass-catching group and has a new defensive coordinator in place as part of the broader offseason picture.
The problem is that Buffalo does not need to keep chasing volume at the position just for the sake of it. The roster already has enough mouths to feed, and another major addition would only squeeze the roles of Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir and Dalton Kincaid while adding more risk to a room that has already been turned over. For the Bills, the temptation is understandable, but the smarter play may be resisting another expensive swing and trusting the depth they have already built. [Read more 🡒]