Bills release practice squad contender Tyler Bass and add well-known WR

A familiar face has returned to One Bills Drive as the Buffalo Bills have re-signed wide receiver Deon Cain to their practice squad. In a corresponding move, the team released kicker Lucas Havrisik from the reserve unit.

Cain, 28, was selected in the sixth round by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2018 NFL Draft. He spent his rookie season on the injured reserve list and appeared in seven games for the Colts in his second season, catching four passes for 52 yards. He was released by Indianapolis midway through the 2019 season and immediately signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he caught five passes for 72 yards in two seasons.

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Since then, the pass catcher has bounced around with multiple teams in multiple leagues, winning back-to-back USFL and UFL championships with the Birmingham Stallions in 2023 and 2024. He wasn't an overly productive offensive player throughout the 2023 USFL season, catching 16 passes for 182 yards. However, he was an impressive contributor on special teams, gaining 668 yards on kick returns; He caught three touchdown passes in the 2023 USFL Championship Game in an unexpected breakout performance and received USFL Championship Game MVP honors.

He joined the Bills as a deep signing in mid-August and caught three passes for 28 yards. He was on Buffalo's first practice squad but was released to make room for former Denver Broncos wideout Jalen Virgil before Week 1; He has spent most of the 2024 season so far on the Carolina Panthers practice squad. He joins Virgil, Tyrell Shavers and KJ Hamler as receivers on the Bills' reserve unit.

Havrisik's release shows that Buffalo's faith in veteran kicker Tyler Bass has been somewhat restored; The Bills signed Havrisik to the practice squad in mid-October because Bass made only 75% of his field goals and 90% of his extra points. Bass hasn't missed a single kick in the last two games; His problems aren't necessarily behind him yet, but the team has apparently seen enough to part ways with his reinforcements.

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