Sports
Bills release safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson a day after his spitting suspension ends
Buffalo cut safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson after six games, one day after he finished a one-game ban for spitting toward Raiders tight end Brock Bowers.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson's time in Buffalo is over.
The Bills released the veteran safety on Tuesday. The move came just one day after he finished serving a one-game suspension for spitting at an opponent.
Gardner-Johnson, 28, signed with Buffalo in the offseason. He started the team's first six games.
The ejection
His trouble started against the Las Vegas Raiders. Just before halftime he was ejected for spitting in the direction of tight end Brock Bowers.
The NFL then suspended him for one game. He sat out Buffalo's Week 8 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
In six games with the Bills he made 26 tackles with two pass breakups and one interception.
Who plays safety now
Veterans Damar Hamlin and Geno Stone were the active safeties against Baltimore. Rookie Jalon Kilgore is also on the roster.
The feeling inside the team is that those players did enough to earn a longer look at the job.
All three also help on special teams. Gardner-Johnson did not play a single special teams snap in his six games.
A well-traveled veteran
Buffalo was a new stop in a busy few years for Gardner-Johnson. He had played for six teams in the past five seasons before signing with the Bills.
He won a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles after the 2024 season.
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