The Buffalo Bills hired Rick Dennison as offensive coordinator on Thursday. The immediate question upon the news: What does this mean for Tyrod Taylor?
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Friday on Good Morning Football that it could be good news for the Bills' incumbent quarterback.
"For Tyrod Taylor, who some people assume is gone from Buffalo, this is pretty good news. Because this was the quarterbacks coach in Baltimore when Tyrod Taylor was the back to Joe Flacco...so there is a lot of familiarity here," Rapoport said. "It would make no sense if the Bills hired Rick Dennison and got rid of Tyrod Taylor, one of the reasons (Dennison) signed there. So do not be surprised if Taylor is back, maybe on some sort of restructured contract for cap reasons. But this is very good news for the Bills' starter."
Dennison spent just one season with Taylor in Baltimore in 2014, before following Gary Kubiak to Denver in 2015. The offenses under Dennison in both Houston and Denver -- run-first operations, with heavy play-action and bootlegs -- might be a better signal for Taylor's chances of returning than a deep-seeded familiarity stemming from one season.
The previous relationship, however, shouldn't be discounted. The Broncoseven reportedly tried to bring Taylor to Denver when he was a free agent in 2015.
If Dennison and Taylor are a mutual fit, the contract situation becomes the next issue. The Bills must decide whether to pick up the option that would guarantee Taylor more than $30 million. Buffalo has never seemed inclined to take on that sort of commitment to a quarterback they benched in Week 17.
Would Dennison's presence nudge the franchise to commit to Taylor or for the quarterback to agree to renegotiate his contract instead of hitting the open market and see what others might pay?