Buffalo Bills Re-Sign Safety Sam Franklin Jr. Following Strong Special Teams Season

Franklin’s path to this deal runs straight through his 2025 contributions on special teams. He appeared in all 17 regular season games and logged 75.8% of the Bills’ special teams snaps, finishing with 13 tackles in that phase alone.

His resume in Carolina backs it up too. Over 74 games with the Panthers, he had topped 60% of their special teams snaps in every season since 2021, peaking at 84% in 2024. That kind of usage reflects genuine trust from coaching staffs, not just depth-roster filler work.

Franklin went undrafted out of Temple in 2020 and has spent his career building credibility through the one area where most overlooked players can carve out a real role. At $2.5 million average per year, the Bills are paying him like a dependable piece rather than a practice squad body.

What This Re-Signing Signals About the Bills’ Roster-Building Approach Going Forward

Buffalo’s decision to lock Franklin up for three years says something about how the organization thinks about roster construction. Special teams performance is measurable, and when a player grades out consistently, the front office notices.

General manager Brandon Beane has a history of prioritizing depth at positions where performance can be tracked clearly. Franklin fits into that model. Not that he’s a centerpiece of the defense, but on a team with Super Bowl expectations, the supporting cast around star players is as important as the starting squad.

Franklin is heading into his age-30 season, so this contract likely covers the back half of his career. For the Bills, the value is in what he does on Sundays in the kicking game, and on that front, his 2025 season gave them every reason to keep him.