Bills general manager Brandon Beane was quick to throw the Bengals under the bus following Buffalo’s 27-10 playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
In a media session two days after missing out on the AFC Championship game, Beane made his opinions known in response to a question regarding whether there was anything to learn from how the Bengals play and deploy their receivers.
“They have a good team. They, right now, are on the advantage of a rookie quarterback contract,” Beane said. “They had some lean years and, without getting too much into their build, I don’t want to suck bad enough to have to get Ja’Marr Chase. He’s a heck of a talent, I’d love to have him. But you’ve got to go through some lean years to do that.”
Beane has held the GM position in Buffalo since 2017 and was previously with Carolina Panthers for 19 years, holding positions of personnel assistant, director of football operations, and assistant general manager.
Beane elaborated on the “constraints of the cap.” Bills quarterback Josh Allen and wide receiver Stefon Diggs had combined salary-cap hits of more than $28 million in 2022 (that total is set to exceed $60 million in 2023), according to Spotrac. In comparison, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Chase, still signed to rookie deals, come in at less than $17 million combined in 2022 and less than $20 million combined in 2023.
Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane walks on the field before the game against the Miami Dolphins on October 20, 2019 in Orchard Park. Getty Images
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase runs with the ball during their playoff win over the Bills on Sunday. USA TODAY Sports“They’ve got some good young players,” Beane said. “We’re gonna try to get as many good players as we can through the draft and through free agency. But, again, our cap situation is a little different by whoever is under the book.”
