Bills acquire CB help, trade for Packers’ Douglas

Rob Demovsky, ESPN Staff WriterOct 31, 2023, 03:45 PM ET
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The Green Bay Packers sent veteran cornerback Rasul Douglas to the Buffalo Bills shortly before Tuesday’s trade deadline.

The Bills sent a 2024 third-round pick to the Packers for Douglas and a 2024 fifth-round pick.

Douglas had been among the most vocal Packers players when it came to expressing frustration over their struggles on the way to the 2-5 start.

“We’re saying s— but until we actually do the s—, it don’t really matter,” Douglas said after Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. “I’m thinking about it like, bro, I’ve never been a loser in my life. These last two years have been f—ing loser. That s— ain’t me. I don’t think that s—‘s us. We’ve got to do something, you know what I mean?”

The Packers signed Douglas during the 2021 season off the Arizona Cardinals‘ practice squad and he led the team with five interceptions in a little more than half a season. That offseason, they signed him to a three-year, $21 million deal.

Douglas started every game this season and has one interception. The Packers will now likely go with rookie Carrington Valentine as the corner opposite Jaire Alexander. Eric Stokes is on injured reserve for at least three more weeks.

Adding Douglas gives the Bills another veteran presence and the help that the team was looking for in the cornerback room after losing Tre’Davious White for the season because of a torn right Achilles in Week 4. With White, the Bills had an NFL-best eight interceptions from Weeks 1-4 this season, while allowing the lowest total QBR (24.7) and just 169.5 passing yards per game.

Since then, the Bills have zero interceptions, a total QBR allowed of 63.9 (26th) and are allowing 238.8 passing yards per game. Douglas has 10 interceptions over the last three seasons and has allowed a 59.8% completion percentage as the nearest defender, per Next Gen Stats. His experience and success in zone coverage will help. Eight of those interceptions came in zone and he allowed 57% of passes to be completed in zone coverage as the nearest defender.

With White out, the Bills have started multiple combinations at outside cornerback because of injuries with 2022 sixth-round pick Christian Benford the top healthy corner and veteran Dane Jackson starting alongside him when healthy, but he hasn’t had the most consistent start to the season. Jackson has allowed an 82.4% completion percentage as the nearest defender in coverage (14-17) this season and a quarterback rating of 118.6, per Next Gen Stats.

The Bills’ 2022 first-round pick, Kaiir Elam, who did not have much experience in coverages the Bills play from his time at Florida, has been a healthy scratch for five games this season as he continues to move down the depth chart, including in Week 8 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when practice squad cornerback Josh Norman, 35, played on special teams ahead of Elam.

ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg contributed to this report.