Bills address depth at safety by signing Dee Delaney to 1-year contract and cut receiver Cephus

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills addressed their depth at safety by signing Dee Delaney to a one-year contract on Thursday.

The 29-year-old Delaney has five seasons of NFL experience, including the past three with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he had five starts in 49 appearances. An undrafted free agent out of The Citadel, he broke into the NFL playing two games with Jacksonville in 2018, and spent the next season appearing in one game with Washington.

Delaney joins a Bills team in transition at safety, following the breakup of the Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer starting tandem that had been together since 2017. Poyer was cut in March and has since signed with Miami, while Hyde is unsigned and considering retirement.

Returning backup Taylor Rapp and offseason addition Mike Edwards are projected to take over as starters on a unit that also includes Cole Bishop, who was selected in the second round of the draft last month.

Buffalo freed up a roster spot by releasing recently signed receiver Quintez Cephus, who became expendable after the team added free agent Marquez Valdes-Scantling on Tuesday.

Cephus, who spent his first three NFL seasons with Detroit, was seeking a fresh start after missing the entire 2023 season as part of a league suspension for betting on NFL games in 2022.

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