Buffalo Rumblings
Is the special teams mainstay safe in the final year of his rookie contract?
The Buffalo Bills have dealt with a litany of injuries at the linebacker spot over the last two seasons. Generally, they only play two linebackers at a time so, in theory, the team should have plenty of depth there given the lack of players on the field at once. However, that depth has been tested often, and it’s fair to wonder whether the team has been too reliant on hoping for the good health within the top of its depth chart at times.
Heading into last season, Buffalo tried to bolster the linebacker spot by adding bodies in training camp. This offseason, the team has just seven linebackers on the 90-man roster, and three of them have been extremely injury-prone throughout the last few seasons.
Is this a recipe for disaster? Are the Bills finally due for some long-term health at the middle level of its defense? Given the reps their depth players have seen of late, is it safe to say that Buffalo’s linebacker group is sufficiently stocked for a title run?
In today’s edition of “90 players in 90 days,” we profile a long-term backup and special teams stalwart who’s looking to stay healthy in 2025.
Name: Baylon Spector
Number: 54
Position: LB
Height/Weight: 6’, 233 pounds
Age: 26 (27 on 10/20/2025)
Experience/Draft: 4; selected by Buffalo in the seventh round (No. 231 overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft
College: Clemson
Acquired: Seventh-round draft pick
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Spector enters the final year of his four-year, $3,763,724 rookie contract. For the 2025 season, he carries a cap hit of $1,125,931 if he makes the 53-man roster. If Buffalo releases him, they will be responsible for a dead-cap charge of $25,931.
2024 Recap: Spector began the season by playing zero defensive snaps in Buffalo’s Week 1 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. That he was active was a good sign, though, as he dealt with a calf injury throughout the preseason.
Thanks to an injury to middle linebacker Terrel Bernard, he was pressed into duty on defense the following week against the Miami Dolphins, and he had a massive game. Spector racked up 10 tackles, including one for a loss, on 62 defensive snaps in the 31-10 romp. He started the next two games, totaling 12 tackles, one sack, and one fumble recovery.
Spector returned to the bench when Bernard returned to the lineup, but when Bernard was injured again three weeks later, Spector re-entered the starting lineup in Buffalo’s victory over the Seattle Seahawks.
It was back to the bench the following week when Buffalo and Miami met again, but Spector injured his calf playing special teams, which necessitated a trip to Injured Reserve (IR). He returned against the Detroit Lions in Week 15, and then started the following week against the New England Patriots. However, the calf injury resurfaced, and he finished the season on IR. Spector totaled 40 tackles, 1.5 sacks,...
