Tyrod Taylor undergoing groin surgery; could contract become guaranteed?
Tyrod Taylor shared some photos of himself in a hospital bed Thursday morning, and multiple reports claim the Buffalo Bills quarterback is undergoing groin surgery. Will that have any impact on his future with the team?
As Nick Veronica of The Buffalo News points out, the remaining $30 million or so on Taylor’s contract would become fully guaranteed if he cannot pass a physical by March 11.
#Bills QB Tyrod Taylor may be having surgery today, per his Snapchat. Again, if he can't pass a physical by March 11, $$ becomes guaranteed pic.twitter.com/L3r9k9prlE
— Nick Veronica (@NickVeronica) January 5, 2017
The Bills chose to bench Taylor for Week 17 out of fear that he might suffer a serious injury, which would convert the remainder of his contract to guaranteed money. As it turns out, Taylor was already playing through a significant injury for weeks. Team officials obviously knew that, so they decided they didn’t want to risk him injuring the groin further or suffering a new injury.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Taylor’s recovery period is expected to be around six weeks. Six weeks from Thursday would be Feb. 16, so he should be able to pass his physical on March 11 if all goes to plan. But if not, things could get really awkward in Buffalo. For evidence of that, look no further than the statement the Bills put out:
.@buffalobills team statement: pic.twitter.com/SNAr2GPQjf
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) January 5, 2017
If you heard what Taylor said about not being allowed to play in Week 17, you get the impression that his relationship with the Bills is not on solid ground. His surgery could complicate the situation even further.