Bills may need to manage top tight end's workload due to injury concerns
· Yahoo Sports
The Buffalo Bills know they're better with tight end Dalton Kincaid on the field. They just don't know how often he'll be on the field this summer.
Kincaid is making progress physically, but managing his workload could still be part of the plan entering the 2026 season, general manager Brandon Beane said at the NFL’s annual meetings on Monday.
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The 2023 first-round pick missed five games last year and logged 25 or fewer snaps in eight games, including four with less than 20 snaps.
"I think Dalton did get stronger," Beane said. "I think he whole body held up better. I think just the knee was bothersome. You're fighting that battle of rest and not playing and getting out of rhythm versus keeping him going."
Buffalo picked up Kincaid's fifth-year option, keeping him with the Bills through 2027.
Limited snaps, big impact
Buffalo has a highly effective weapon it can't fully unleash.
Kincaid played just 302 offensive snaps last season — 38% of the Bills’ total — as injuries continued to limit his availability.
It was a steep drop from his rookie year in 2023 (699 snaps), and from 2024 (471), when he first began dealing with knee issues.
Despite that, Kincaid remained one of Buffalo’s most productive pass-catchers.
He finished second on the team with 39 receptions and 571 receiving yards, and led the Bills with five touchdown catches. He also scored a touchdown in each playoff game.
Kincaid was targeted on 16.2% of his snaps, roughly one out of every six play.
Injuries have shaped Kincaid's role
Kincaid has missed nine games over the past two seasons while dealing with hamstring and knee injuries, including a torn PCL suffered in 2024 that continued to affect him last year.
Even when active, his workload was carefully governed.
“We tried to manage that,” Beane said. “When he was on the field, a lot of times it was probably a passing situation. We’d like for it to be where he’s able to play more.”
That led to increased roles for Dawson Knox and rookie Jackson Hawes, with Knox logging the most snaps at the position.
The focus this offseason is strengthening not just Kincaid’s knee, but everything around it.
“The number one thing is let’s get it stronger, not only the knee itself but around the knee,” Beane said. “You just hope you have no setbacks. Unfortunately that thing just flared up (last season) and it was tough to calm down."
Looking ahead to 2026
Beane said it's too early to determine how Kincaid will be handled in training camp, nothing the intensity of camp often reveals whether a player needs a modified schedule.
"We're hopeful and optimsitic that he he'll be able to (have a full workload), but i thik we'll just see how that goes," Beane said. "Is he kind of having to go two days on and one a little less or one off? I think we'll see how it's doing. We've just got to make sure it's smart."
The Bills' goal is to have Kincaid's body prepared for the rigors of a full 17-game season, something he has yet to complete.
"We've got to get him ready, get him kind of armored up, calloused if you will," Beane said.
Buffalo offensive-coordinator-turned-head-coach Joe Brady loved Kincaid's value when healthy.
"You guys saw him in the playoffs, right?" Brady said on Tuesday. "He's a difference-maker. You get him in matchups with safeties, linebackers. Critical moments with Josh (Allen) looking his way, but you want him out there. He did everything he had to do last offseason, too. When he's out there, we're better."
The challenge is keeping Kincaid out there for 2026.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills may manage Dalton Kincaid's workload entering 2026