Just as Jairus Byrd makes his way back onto the Buffalo Bills, trade rumors run rampant around him. The Buffalo Bills safety is returning after a foot injury forced him to miss the start of the season. There is no questioning Byrd's talent on the field, which is why the team is fielding calls for the top defensive star.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that while general manager Doug Whaley is not actively calling teams interested in adding a safety, but he is certainly picking up the phone when it rings. Tension has been building between Byrd and the Bills. First he failed to negotiate a new long-term contract in the offseason, forcing Buffalo to use the franchise tag on him. Now as he becomes available to get a new deal again, the Bills are looking to send him off.
"Our focus right now is Jairus getting on the field and playing the best he can for the Buffalo Bills," Whaley said, via the Associated Press. "We are not actively on the phone hammering out trying to look for a trade. By the same token, [team president] Russ Brandon would listen if someone wanted to trade. So if the phone rings, we're going to listen. But that doesn't mean we're out trying to trade."
Whaley is certainly not ruling out re-signing Byrd in the offseason, but right now all signs point to the safety being on his way out.
"Absolutely, I mean there's always a possibility," Whaley said. "It's one of those things where you can never say never. Will he be on the team? We hope so. We're not sure, but we're going to do everything that's best for the Buffalo Bills in the future."
The issue with trading Byrd comes down to money. The safety will likely command one of the highest contracts for defensive players when he gets the chance. Also, because he is working off a franchise tag, any team that acquires him will not be able to negotiate a new deal until the season is over. That is a lot of money and a lot of risk for a player coming off of injury.
As Byrd makes his way back into the starting lineup, he is well-aware fans are likely frustrated with him. After making waves demanding a new deal, he did not even get a chance to show why he is worthy of money after getting injured in the preseason. Now back on the field, Byrd is not concerned about winning over the fanbase.
"I'm not trying to win them back over," Byrd said, via the team's website. "I'm just trying to go out there and play my game, do what we can to win games for these guys in the locker room that have played hard, that I've been with for four years. That's what we're going to try to do is go win games."
