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As the Buffalo Bills prepare for the 2026 NFL season, Bills Wire will take a look at the most important contributors on their roster. The team has some cornerstone players who will be returning for another shot at bringing a Lombardi Trophy to Buffalo, and they'll have help from some new additions as well.
Leading up to the season, we will be counting down the top-30 most important players on the roster. We'll recap their 2025 season, look ahead to what they'll offer in 2026, and tackle the most pressing questions surrounding them this coming year.
Next on the countdown is Geno Stone.
Position: Free safety
Age at start of season: 27
Experience: Seven years
2026 cap hit: $1,262,500
Stone started all 17 games for the Bengals in each of the last two years, and has 53 total starts in his career. In 2025, he had a bit of a down year, which is why the Bengals let him walk and Buffalo snagged him for 1-year, $1.4M. His 54.3 grade from Pro Football Focus ranked 81st out of 98 safeties.
Stone has played both safety spots but has fared better as a free safety, which is where the Bills will be hoping he can contribute. He recorded the second-most interceptions in the league in 2023 playing primarily the free or "deep" safety. If he can play that role while sharing the field with safeties Cole Bishop and C.J. Gardner-Johnson in dime packages and obvious passing situations, it would help both of them be able to play more free and make plays.
Bills rookie fifth-round pick Jalon Kilgore has gotten off to a tremendous start at training camp, flying around and making plays on the ball, including multiple interceptions in the first couple days of camp. Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said, "He's going to be a really good player, I think."
Stone has gotten the first opportunity at being the first reserve safety behind Bishop and Gardner-Johnson, which should play a vital role under Leonhard, but he'll have to fend off the hungry rookie.
Check back as we continue the countdown on our list of the 30 most important Bills ahead of the 2026 season.
This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: 30 most important Bills players of 2026: No. 27 Geno Stone
Continue reading...
Leading up to the season, we will be counting down the top-30 most important players on the roster. We'll recap their 2025 season, look ahead to what they'll offer in 2026, and tackle the most pressing questions surrounding them this coming year.
Next on the countdown is Geno Stone.
Background
Position: Free safety
Age at start of season: 27
Experience: Seven years
2026 cap hit: $1,262,500
2025 recap
Stone started all 17 games for the Bengals in each of the last two years, and has 53 total starts in his career. In 2025, he had a bit of a down year, which is why the Bengals let him walk and Buffalo snagged him for 1-year, $1.4M. His 54.3 grade from Pro Football Focus ranked 81st out of 98 safeties.
2026 outlook
Stone has played both safety spots but has fared better as a free safety, which is where the Bills will be hoping he can contribute. He recorded the second-most interceptions in the league in 2023 playing primarily the free or "deep" safety. If he can play that role while sharing the field with safeties Cole Bishop and C.J. Gardner-Johnson in dime packages and obvious passing situations, it would help both of them be able to play more free and make plays.
Biggest question: Can he hold off the rookie for snaps?
Bills rookie fifth-round pick Jalon Kilgore has gotten off to a tremendous start at training camp, flying around and making plays on the ball, including multiple interceptions in the first couple days of camp. Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said, "He's going to be a really good player, I think."
Stone has gotten the first opportunity at being the first reserve safety behind Bishop and Gardner-Johnson, which should play a vital role under Leonhard, but he'll have to fend off the hungry rookie.
30 most important Bills of 2026
Check back as we continue the countdown on our list of the 30 most important Bills ahead of the 2026 season.
This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: 30 most important Bills players of 2026: No. 27 Geno Stone
Continue reading...
