The Buffalo Bills wrapped up the preseason this week and now face the hard work of trimming the roster to 53 players before Sunday’s NFL deadline.
Wide receiver is one of the rooms where the choices look especially tight. After the final exhibition game, Bills reporter Matt Parrino of NYUP.com projected that veteran Trent Sherfield will not make the initial 53-man squad.
“Trent Sherfield was a difficult cut because he’s done everything you can ask this summer,” Parrino wrote.
“He has been a reliable pass catcher and does a little bit of everything on special teams. He’d probably be the best blocker in the room if he made the team. In the end, the Bills just need to add elsewhere. Sherfield will be a priority practice squad addition and he spent plenty of time on p-squads the past few seasons. Mecole Hardman has been in the punt return battle all summer but his inconsistent hands make him untrustworthy.”
Parrino still expects the Bills to keep Sherfield nearby on the practice squad if he clears waivers.Sherfield is heading into his ninth NFL season. He spent last year bouncing between the Arizona Cardinals and Denver Broncos after earlier stops around the league.
He played for Buffalo in 2023 and finished that year with 11 catches for 86 yards and one touchdown.
Sherfield returned to the Bills this offseason and described the move as coming full circle after a difficult 2025.
He signed a two-year, $8 million contract with Denver last year but was waived after 10 games. He later joined Arizona, then spent time on the New England Patriots practice squad during the playoffs before being released again.
“It’s been tough, not going to lie,” Sherfield said recently. “Last year was really tough. First time being cut in eight years. … It was a lot of moving around. It was really tough on me mentally, obviously tough on my family too. But I think it’s a full-circle moment coming back here.”
He said the year of uncertainty forced him to adjust how he looks at the game and his place in it.
“A lot of people get cut. Top guys get released all the time and I think it’s just a perspective change,” Sherfield said. “… My perspective has changed a lot. … I just told myself that I wasn’t going to allow my career to end like that. I’ve always told myself that I want to go out on my own terms and that the league would never push me out.”
Throughout training camp Sherfield has shown he can still contribute as a receiver and on special teams. Bills coach Joe Brady has spoken highly of the veteran’s approach.
“I think he has a comfort level in understanding his role in the league,” Brady said. “He’s such a selfless football player. I love Trent. The personality that he has, the way he goes about it, he’s a leader in that room. He wanted to be part of Buffalo and he’s doing everything he can to try to continue to be a part of the Buffalo Bills.”
Even if Sherfield does not land on the 53-man roster Sunday, the organization appears likely to try to keep him in the building. Practice-squad spots often become the next landing place for players who have already proven they can handle Buffalo’s scheme and special-teams demands.
The Bills open the regular season Sept. 13 on the road against the Houston Texans. Roster decisions made this weekend will shape how the receiving corps and coverage units look when the games start counting.
