The Bills did not sign any free agents in the first few hours after midnight Friday as the NFL free agent market opened, but they did line up some free agent visits. The first unrestricted player to walk through the door at One Bills Drive, once free agency commenced Friday was Cincinnati free agent quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
The four-year veteran is coming off his most extensive NFL action last season as he stepped in for Bengals starter Carson Palmer, who suffered an elbow injury that required surgery.
Fitzpatrick (6'2" 225) started 12 games completing better than 59 percent of his passes. He threw for over 1,900 yards with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions and a passer rating of 70. The Harvard product played his first two NFL seasons with St. Louis.
Buffalo has made no secret that they'd like to add a veteran quarterback as a backup to Trent Edwards, that understands his role. The coaching staff is hopeful that a veteran can help to mentor Edwards on the finer points of the game as he continues to develop.
Fitzpatrick is considered a superior student of the game with good character marks all the way around.
Buffalo did re-sign third quarterback Gibran Hamdan to a new contract Thursday afternoon and tendered exclusive rights quarterback Matt Baker who spent the 2008 season on injured reserve.
