Mecole Hardman’s second act in Buffalo is over before it really started. The Bills released the veteran receiver-returner on Saturday, one day before the 53-man roster deadline.
Hardman, 28, is a three-time Super Bowl champion who caught the overtime touchdown that won Super Bowl LVIII for Kansas City. That resume did not save his roster spot in Western New York.
He signed to Buffalo’s practice squad in November 2025 and never really carved out a defined role. Cutting him now is the Bills admitting the fit was not there.
Ray Davis Took His Job
The clearest reason Hardman is gone: rookie running back Ray Davis won the punt-return job outright in camp. That was Hardman’s primary path to a roster spot.
Once the special teams role disappeared, so did the case for keeping a veteran receiver who was not going to crack the top four in a room featuring Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir and the rest of Buffalo’s healthy corps.
Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane made the cold roster math work. That is what cutdown weekend requires.
Wishnowsky Cut Too
Buffalo also released punter Mitch Wishnowsky on the same day. Rookie seventh-rounder Tommy Doman Jr. won the punting competition and takes over the job in Week 1.
That is a legitimate development. Punting jobs rarely change hands in the NFL, and when they do it usually signals a real leg. Doman clearly earned it, because Wishnowsky was not fighting for his life on the depth chart.
Hardman was one of 13 players the Bills cut on Saturday as teams across the league raced toward the Sunday 6 p.m. ET deadline. Most of those names will not resurface. Hardman probably will.
Somebody Will Sign Him
Three Super Bowl rings and a signature championship-winning touchdown do not stop mattering. Contenders looking for return help in September will get on the phone quickly.
Kansas City could bring him home. Miami could use another gadget piece for the return game.
Hardman is not a WR1 anywhere in this league at this point in his career, but he is still a useful body who has performed on the biggest stage football offers. Those guys always find work.
First Sunday Cut Day in 22 Years
This cutdown weekend is the first one to land on a Sunday in 22 years. That has changed how teams approach the timing of releases.
Front offices got to run one more Saturday scrimmage look, then execute the final wave of trades and cuts with a bit more information in hand. It is a subtle scheduling change with real roster implications.
Hardman got caught up in that wave. So did Wishnowsky. So did dozens of veterans on other rosters across the league.
Bills Move Forward
Buffalo’s 53 is deep at receiver and confident at return. The Bills are trying to be one of the AFC’s two or three best teams, and that means making unsentimental calls in August.
Hardman was a nice story that never really materialized on the field. The Bills gave him a chance. The chance did not stick.
Now the real season starts.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.