The Buffalo Bills have been one of the most disappointing teams in the NFL over the past few years, but after signing Mario Williams and keeping safety Jarius Byrd, they are building for the future and they want cornerback Leodis McKelvin to join them.
According to the Associated Press, the Bills have already started talking to the cornerback and his agent ahead of the Match 12 free agent deadline, as they would like to bring him back to the team before he hits the market. McKelvin was a first round pick by the team and the Bills want to keep him in the secondary.
McKelvin's agent, Hadley Engelhard, told The Associated Press on Thursday that talks have started and that they will speak again Friday, although things are in "the beginning stages."
Engelhard and McKelvin are looking to hit the free agent market, while the Bills want to keep him to shore up their secondary after having Aaron Williams and Justin Rogers on the roster. Teams in the NFL can talk to unrestricted free agents ahead of the March 12 deadline over the weekend and many teams could be calling on the cornerback.
"Things will pick up on Saturday, but I don't rule anything out until a deal is done," Engelhard said.
The Bills are trying to re-sign him before he hits the market, as the 11th overall pick out of Troy in 2008 has been a reliable starter for team, although his skills have dropped in recent years. He was used as a third cornerback in Buffalo last season and made only one pick, but his real skills are in the returning game.
He has scored four special teams touchdowns and led the league with an average of 18.7 punt return yards. He also set a record as the first Bills player to return two punts for touchdowns in one season and he had the single-season franchise record with 1,468 yards on kickoff returns.
Under new head coach Doug Marrone, the team needs to keep McKelvin since they already cut veteran corner Terrence McGee. The Bills used their franchise tag on Byrd and now are moving to other priorities.
The team could target receivers in the offseason and Greg Jennings or Mike Wallace could be fits, as they could pair with Steve Johnson to give the Bills two solid receiving options. Ryan Fitzpatrick will need some support on offense and both those names could be solid pickups.