Just one day ago, the Bills put starting safety Aaron Williams on Injured Reserve, which means there's a good chance that his season will be over. With only four safeties on the roster without Williams, the Bills have signed free agent Sergio Brown to the active roster.
Brown, 28, spent last season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and has also had stints in Indianapolis and New England. Over the course of his career, Brown has a total of 15 starts, and 139 career tackles.
Originally an undrafted free agent, Brown has made 12 of his 15 career starts over the last two seasons. The Bills released cornerback Marcus Roberson earlier in the day to make room for Brown.
Joe B's Take
With how poorly the safety play was against New England in the role that used to be played by Aaron Williams, the Bills had to do something. Jonathan Meeks was involved in two huge busts that went for touchdowns -- and both plays were mired by a visible miscommunication and argument between teammates.
Meeks was only on the field for five snaps in that game.
Then there is Robert Blanton, who played 68 out of 69 total defensive snaps in Williams' place, and he had one of the worst performances of any player on the team during the loss to the Patriots. He had struggles in coverage, which was fairly surprising for a former cornerback, and has consistently had trouble with wrapping up ball carriers for tackles.
Duke Williams went from a standout in training camp and the third safety on the roster, quickly to the bottom of the depth chart and a rarely used defender due to his immense struggles when the ball is in the air.
The safety position has turned into a stark weakness for this Bills team, so something had to be done to try and rectify things -- because teams will continue to attack them at that spot. It's unlikely that Brown gets up to speed quickly enough to help the team this weekend against the Seattle Seahawks.
However, with three full weeks of having the playbook, and if the play of Robert Blanton and Jonathan Meeks doesn't get any better against Seattle, it could open things up for him getting some playing time in Cincinnati during their Week 11 matchup.
This is likely merely a band-aid for the remainder of the 2016 season. With an aging Corey Graham and the uncertainty revolving Aaron Williams, the safety position must be significantly addressed in the offseason.
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