The Buffalo Bills and CJ Spiller have been mentioned in trade rumors this offseason and a deal could go down this summer, as they have not been able to come to a contract extension with the running back and teams like the Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks, NY Giants or Minnesota Vikings could be interested in the deal if the Bills choose to trade.
The Bills love what Spiller brings to the offense, but he had a down year in 2013 after a stellar 2012 season and with him heading towards free agency, a trade could go down. According to NFL.com, the Eagles had interest in Spiller earlier in the offseason and now he is dealing with more chatter during the preseason, as Chris Wesseling writes that Spiller has heard it and has tried to block it out. The talk has been sparked by his contract status along with the fact that the Bills added Bryce Brown in the offseason.
Buffalo also extended Fred Jackson this offseason by another year and that also has added to the trade chatter. The Bills like how Spiller fits into the offense for Doug Marrone, but the team has put itself in position to have some insurance if they end up trading Spiller. Jackson is a productive back that also can catch out of the backfield and the team traded with the Eagles for Bryce Brown this offseason to add more to the position. The team also signed Anthony Dixon and while he is down on the depth chart, he could move up if Spiller gets dealt.
NFL.com also reported that the Bills tried to trade up for Carlos Hyde and that could be another signal that they are at least thinking about trading Spiller in the future. Spiller and other running backs his age are dealing with the fact that the position has been decreasing in value over the past few years and that could lead to a move. Spiller had a career year in 2012 and after having a down season in 2013 he could be on his way out of Buffalo eventually. Spiller was not used as much on the outside last season and that was one issue and his playmaking and speed was not used as effectively as last season.
Spiller has been a healthy back during his NFL career and he has only missed one game over the last three seasons and just three overall in four years. Last season Spiller was under 1,000 yards after rushing for a career high 1,240 the year before and his touchdowns went from six to two last season from 2012. Spiller is strong out of the backfield as well, as he had a career high 43 catches in 2012 for 459 yards and he decreased last season to just 33 catches for 185 yards, missing out on some of that explosiveness from the year before.
Spiller is a fast and explosive back and he has big play ability and whatever team ends up with him, even the Bills, would be well served by using him. Spiller had six yards per carry in 2012 and went down to 4.6 yards last season and the Bills should try and use him more effectively in space this season. The Bills had another losing season in 2013 and they are looking to at least compete for a playoff spot this season.
