One week before NFL free agency begins, the Buffalo Bills\u2019 best available player believes he has played his last game for them.<\/p>\n
Offensive lineman Connor McGovern told The Athletic he and his agent haven\u2019t heard from Bills football boss Brandon Beane since postseason exit interviews in Orchard Park, N.Y.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey haven\u2019t contacted me once,\u201d McGovern said by phone from his offseason home in Florida. \u201cIn my gut, that says it\u2019s over and done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffalo faces difficult decisions to become salary-cap compliant, and McGovern is a precious commodity. Seemingly, half the league needs a center, and McGovern is considered the second-best free agent at the position after Baltimore Ravens anchor Tyler Linderbaum. Their value increased a little more on Tuesday, when 27-year-old Chicago Bears center Drew Dalman abruptly retired.<\/p>\n
McGovern, 28, also can play guard and said he is willing to switch back \u2014 if a team forks over guard money. The Dallas Cowboys used him there from 2020 to 2022. He stayed at left guard for one more season upon signing with the Bills for three years and $22.35 million, then switched to center when captain Mitch Morse left in 2024<\/a>.<\/p>\n Bills left guard David Edwards also is a pending free agent. At practical best, McGovern figured, the Bills can afford to bring only one of them back. Sports contract database Spotrac estimates McGovern\u2019s average annual market value at $16.3 million and Edwards\u2019 at $19.9 million.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a business,\u201d McGovern said. \u201cI\u2019m never going to take it personally. I want to be back in Buffalo, and I know they want me back. But sometimes you\u2019ve got to look in the mirror and be realistic.<\/p>\n \u201cCould we sacrifice money at one spot or maybe draft somebody younger to save some money? The reality is they\u2019re up against the cap.\u201d<\/p>\n McGovern added there\u2019s still time to keep him off the open market. When he left Dallas three years ago, he was committed to learning how much the NFL valued him. He said that\u2019s not the case now. He has earned about $28 million over his career and loves Western New York.<\/p>\n \u201cDo I need all the money in the world? No, but there\u2019s a respect factor involved, too,\u201d McGovern said. \u201cThere\u2019s a certain number in my head that I would have no problem accepting, and then I don\u2019t need to go to free agency. If they come to the number that me and my wife are comfortable with, I would gladly say yes and not talk to anybody else.\u201d<\/p>\n Buffalo hasn\u2019t rung McGovern, but he hasn\u2019t missed the call over the past three years. The only two games he didn\u2019t start were the past two regular-season finales, with the Bills resting for the playoffs.<\/p>\n McGovern revealed that in the Week 5 loss to the New England Patriots, he mangled his right hand, which he snaps with.<\/p>\n \u201cI tore a couple ligaments and broke my knuckle,\u201d McGovern said. \u201cAlways fun. No bad snaps, though! So no one knew.<\/p>\n \u201cWe tried taping it for a few weeks, but it didn\u2019t really do anything. I just had to deal with it. My physical therapist was every day putting needles in it to help with the swelling, different laser treatments, manual therapy, extra work on it.\u201d<\/p>\n He also tore his left triceps in the offensive line\u2019s clutch Week 13 performance against the Pittsburgh Steelers. A week earlier, the Houston Texans sacked Josh Allen eight times and hit him four more times while passing. Left tackle Dion Dawkins and right tackle Spencer Brown also suffered injuries that sidelined them in Pittsburgh, but the patchwork line surrendered zero sacks in a 26-7 laugher<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI was only on the injury report with a minor ankle sprain (in Weeks 11 and 12) because I didn\u2019t do the walkthroughs,\u201d McGovern said. \u201cBut our training staff really doesn\u2019t put me on the report because I\u2019m not going to miss practice, and I\u2019m always going to play through it.\u201d<\/p>\n Throughout McGovern\u2019s time in Buffalo, the five starting offensive linemen combined to miss five games to injury, helping Allen win the 2024 MVP and James Cook claim the 2025 NFL rushing title.<\/p>\n