CJ Gardner-Johnson’s time with the Buffalo Bills is over, and the move comes with a salary-cap wrinkle that matters for the team’s books.
The Bills announced Tuesday that Gardner-Johnson has been released after he was suspended by the NFL in the aftermath of his ejection from Buffalo’s 33-30 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 6. He served the suspension in Week 8, when the Bills beat the Baltimore Ravens 36-10.
His exit from the Raiders game came in the first half, when he was tossed after a back-and-forth with members of the Las Vegas offense. In the middle of that exchange, it appeared Gardner-Johnson spit toward the group in Silver and Black.
The league’s response wasn’t a shock, especially with the incident caught on camera. Gardner-Johnson didn’t have much room to argue the case.
Now the Bills have moved on, but the financial side of the decision is not as simple as just walking away from the player. Gardner-Johnson signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal with Buffalo that also included another $2.5 million in incentives.
According to Spotrac, releasing him does not help the Bills against the salary cap, even with the incentives no longer in play because of the release. The bigger issue is the replacement cost, which is where the roster decision starts to sting.
Over The Cap notes that Gardner-Johnson already has two void years attached to his contract over the next two years, carrying costs of $1 million and $500,000, respectively.
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