Getty Former Niners defensive tackle Arik Armstead at Levi’s Stadium on January 14, 2023.

The Buffalo Bills are active in free agency after cutting a slew of veterans and restructuring several contracts. However, Bills general manager Brandon Beane still has some work to do to be cap-compliant.

According to OvertheCap.com, the Bills are approximately $2.2 million over the $255.4 million cap limit. Therefore, when a new report linked the Bills to former San Francisco 49ers star Arik Armstead, analysts did a double-take.

After the Niners officially released Armstead on Wednesday, March 13, The Athletic’s Matt Barrows posted on X, “Keep an eye on Buffalo as a possible landing spot.”

https://t.co/N3tLnPu4oo pic.twitter.com/Z4D8jwsQJz

— Bruce Nolan (@BruceExclusive) March 13, 2024

Excuse me?!?!?! https://t.co/w1SN6BqiVK

— Greg Cover 1 🏈 (@GregTompsett) March 13, 2024

Cover 1 host Greg Tompsett posted, “I mean, he’s a F’ing monster, I just didn’t think we could afford him (still really don’t).”

Based on the Bills’ current financial state, it’s unclear what kind of competitive offer they could make. The former first-round pick from the 2015 NFL draft still had one year left on the five-year, $85 million extension he signed in 2020. However, Armstead, San Francisco’s longest-tenured player, is only available because he refused to take a pay cut.

NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco posted on March 10, “The 49ers approached Arik Armstead about accepting a significant pay cut from his scheduled salary of $17.41 million. He declined, so the 49ers are set to release him and he will become a free agent.”

With a post-June 1 release, the 49ers save $18 million in cap space for 2024 while eating $10.31 million in dead money. As for the multiple void years remaining on Armstead’s contract, “The team will eat $15.4 million over the next three years,” Niners Nation reported. But they will save $26 million in cap space.

Bills News: Arik Armstead’s Injury History Is Worrisome

Sources to @BleacherReport: #49ers star DL Arik Armstead has decided to become a free agent and will be released.

Armstead comes off a 6 tackle, 1-sack performance in the Super Bowl, and ranks 4th in playoff sacks among all active players.

His 8 playoff sacks rank second… pic.twitter.com/og5m3RsU3s

— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) March 11, 2024

It would be a huge splash for the Bills to land the 6-foot-7, 290-pound interior lineman. Armstead’s six tackles and 1 sack against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl is likely an attractive stat to Beane. In 12 regular season games last season, he recorded 27 total tackles, 13 quarterback hits, and 5 sacks.

Cover 1 host Anthony Prohaska posted, “The idea of Arik Armstead playing in a rotation with Ed Oliver & DaQuan Jones is wild. And we know how much [Bills head coach Sean] McDermott & Beane believe in building through the D-Line.”

However, the 30-year-old’s injury history may give Beane pause from banking the bank for him. Over the past two seasons, he’s missed 13 games. In 2022, he missed multiple games due to a foot fracture and plantar fasciitis, per SI. Foot injuries again plagued the Oregon alum this season.

However, several teams are interested in landing Armstead, including the Tennessee Titans, according to The Athletic’s Diana Russini. Barrows also noted the Los Angeles Chargers could be in the mix.

The Bills’ Defense Will Look Very Different Next Season

DaQuan Jones had options.

But he wanted to be in Buffalo #BillsMafia @WKBW pic.twitter.com/HYjHB3SEip

— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) March 12, 2024

After cutting Tre’Davious White, Siran Neal, and Jordan Poyer, the Bills said goodbye to Leonard Floyd and Dane Jackson.

The jury’s still out on All-Pro safety Micah Hyde, who is mulling over retirement. However, the Bills move to re-sign defensive end A.J. Epenesa and defensive tackle DaQuan Jones.

Spectrum News 1’s Brian Campbell wrote, “Jones’ return also brings a veteran presence to a defensive front that stands to lose several players to free agency, including Linval Joseph and Tim Settle, and with Jordan Phillips contemplating retirement.”

LB Eric Kendricks Will Be Joining Cowboys, Not 49ers

After reportedly agreeing to a one-year contract with the 49ers yesterday, veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks will instead sign with the Cowboys. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Kendricks had a change of heart, preferring to play in Dallas.

Kendricks was a cap casualty a week ago, getting released from his two-year contract with the Chargers after finishing second on the team in tackles. The nine-year veteran had secured $6.63MM per year after leaving Minnesota for the first time and rewarded Los Angeles with 117 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and six passes defensed. Pro Football Focus graded Kendricks as the 25th best linebacker in the NFL.

A key presence at middle linebacker during the Vikings’ Mike Zimmer-era, Kendricks was tied to an eight-figure-per-year Minnesota deal two seasons ago. Kendricks, 32, has put together eight straight seasons with 100-plus tackles, mixing in 18.5 career sacks. He earned first-team All-Pro acclaim in 2019, helping the Vikings to the divisional round, while starting for four playoff teams from 2015-22.

Kendricks was set to add some depth at linebacker in San Francisco. The 49ers fielded one of the NFL’s better defenses last year but were thrown for a loop when Dre Greenlaw tore his Achilles tendon in the Super Bowl last year. San Francisco will now be forced to look elsewhere for that depth.

Instead, Kendricks is set to reunite with Zimmer, who takes over as defensive coordinator in Dallas this offseason. Zimmer sought an upgrade at middle linebacker on a defense that was stout against the pass but middling against the run. Kendricks should slot in as a starter between Micah Parsons and Leighton Vander Esch, ceding time here and there to Damone Clark. Due to his experience with Zimmer, though, expect Kendricks to play a larger role in Dallas.