After taking Keon Coleman with their first draft pick, the Buffalo Bills are making another addition to their wide receiving corps.
The team announced on April 29 that they signed free agent receiver Quintez Cephus to a one-year deal. The former Detroit Lions pass-catcher is coming off a one-year suspension for violating the league’s rules against gambling, with the move drawing some pushback from fans.
Quintez Cephus Brings Light Resume to Buffalo
Cephus came into the NFL as a fifth-round draft pick of the Lions in 2020, playing a light role in his three seasons in Detroit. After a productive start to his career with 20 receptions for 349 yards and two touchdowns in 13 games his rookie season, Cephus took a step back in 2021 with just 15 receptions for 204 yards and two touchdowns in 2021 and just two catches for 15 yards in 2022 while dealing with on and off injuries.
Cephus did not play in 2023 as he was suspended for violating the league’s gambling rules. As The Associated Press noted, he was one of three Lions players to be suspended and was handed the biggest punishment, an indefinite suspension that lasted the entire season.
“Cephus was one of three players suspended indefinitely last April for betting on NFL games in 2022,” the report noted.” Two of his teammates at the time, fellow receivers Stanley Berryhill and Jameson Williams, received six-game suspensions for betting on non-NFL games at the team facility.”
As Bills reporter Chris Brown noted on X, general manager Brandon Beane said shortly after the completion of the NFL Draft that the team had worked out a receiver and planned to sign him. The move sparked some controversy among fans, with some questioning whether he would be a fit for the culture that Beane and head coach Sean McDermott have been building.
