The Buffalo Bills have turned to plan B in their quest to add a pass-catching running back.
A league source told The Buffalo News on Monday that the team has reached a verbal agreement on a contract with free agent Duke Johnson. The deal, which was first reported by ESPN, won't become official until Johnson passes a physical in the coming days.
Johnson, 28, spent five games last season with his hometown Miami Dolphins. Prior to that, he spent the first four years of his NFL career with the Cleveland Browns after being a third-round draft pick in 2015. He then spent two years with the Houston Texans. He had a brief stint on the Jacksonville Jaguars' practice squad early in the 2021 season before joining the Dolphins. Johnson initially signed to Miami's practice squad in October, then was promoted to the active roster ahead of the Week 15 game against the New York Jets. He responded with a career-high 107 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 22 attempts. The next day, he was signed to the 53-man roster. He finished the season with 71 carries for 330 yards (4.65 yards per rush) and three touchdowns. Johnson also had four catches for 41 yards.
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Throughout his career, he has been a proven pass-catching back. In 96 career games (21 starts), Johnson has made 311 catches for 2,870 yards (9.2 yards per reception) and 12 touchdowns. He's also rushed 530 times for 2,261 yards and 11 TDs. His best season came in 2017 when he rushed for 82 times for 382 yards and four touchdowns and caught 74 passes for 693 yards and three more touchdowns.
Johnson's addition comes after the Bills thought they had an agreement with Washington running back J.D. McKissic last week. McKissic, however, backed out of the deal to re-sign with the Commanders – a development that left Bills General Manager Brandon Beane fuming.
"That was tough. Obviously, he was a guy we targeted, and in this business, in general, when you have an agreement, it’s good,” Beane said last week. “But until there's ink on the paper …
"There were some things that went down with the other organization, which is painful, but they chose to do what they did, and I couldn't stop it. Once you have an agreement, the agent’s supposed to say it’s over. And this agent did that. And this agent told the other club it's over. But the other club didn't back off.”
The Bills clearly had a role in mind for McKissic, likely on third downs. Johnson will now get the chance to occupy that spot behind Devin Singletary and Zack Moss.
His likely addition comes at the same time the Bills lost a running back, as Matt Breida has signed with the New York Giants after one year in Buffalo.
Breida played in nine games for the Bills last year. He had 125 yards and one rushing touchdown on 26 carries. He added another 72 yards receiving and two touchdowns on seven catches. Breida told New York reporters that former Bills offensive coordinator and new Giants head coach Brian Daboll was a big part of the reason he decided to sign with the team.
The 27-year-old running back entered the NFL with the 49ers as an undrafted free agent. He spent three years there before playing a season in Miami.
Taiwan Jones, who served as the fourth running back and played a key role on special teams last year for the Bills, remains an unrestricted free agent.
News Sports Reporter Katherine Fitzgerald contributed to this report.
