The Buffalo Bills have spent this offseason rewarding several of their homegrown stars. Josh Allen became the highest-paid player in NFL history in terms of guaranteed money, with $250 million of his $330 million extension fully guaranteed. Buffalo also dished out four-year extensions to defensive end Greg Rousseau, wide receiver Khalil Shakir, and linebacker Terrel Bernard. The new money and new deal aren’t the only big changes for Bernard. He will also be sporting a new number.
Bernard is changing his jersey number from No. 43 to No. 8, the team announced. While Bernard himself has yet to explain why he wanted to make the change at the time of writing, the single-digit revolution in the NFL has been very strong over the last number of years. The No. 8 looks great in the mock-up the team did in their social media posts, so it will likely be well-received by fans.
Bernard is coming off a second consecutive 100 tackle season. 2023 was his coming out party, totaling 143 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and three interceptions.