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Deven Thompkins got waived by the Buccaneers on Tuesday.
The Buffalo Bills endured some struggles with their wide receivers last season, but have decided to address the situation by bringing in a range of options to help.
That included the addition of a veteran wide receiver who earned praise in the past for his explosive play. The team will head into training camp with a deep roster at wide receiver, which could lead to some difficult decisions when it comes time to finalize the roster.
The Bills announced this week that they signed veteran wide receiver Deven Thompson, who spent time with several teams since coming into the NFL in 2022. Thompkins has appeared in 36 total games with two starts, making 29 receptions for 162 yards and one touchdown. Thompkins has also been a regular on special teams, returning punts and kicks across his four NFL seasons.
Thompkins spent the 2025 season with the Atlanta Falcons, appearing in seven games and spending most of his time on special teams.
Though he went undrafted after leaving Utah State in 2022, Thompkins earned some buzz as an undrafted free agent after landing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Head coach Todd Bowles praised Thompkins as a speedy playmaker during the team’s preseason practices.
“He’s quick, he’s fast, he’s explosive off of the ball, and he’s made some good catches,” Bowles said. “I’ll be looking at him.”
Thompkins was a big producer in college, making 71 receptions for 2,519 yards and 15 touchdowns in his college career. He also averaged 24.9 yards on kick returns.
It could be difficult for Thompkins to earn a spot as a kick returner for the Bills, who found a gem in backup running back Ray Davis. After the team experimented with other returners, they settled on Davis midway through the season. He averaged 30.4 yards across 31 returns, bringing one back for a touchdown and earning All-Pro honors as a kick returner.
The team’s wide receiving corps struggled at times throughout the 2025 season, prompting the Bills to bring on two late-season additions — signing veteran Mecole Hardman and claiming Brandin Cooks off waivers. Both Hardman and Cooks went on to play significant roles, though they are both question marks for the 2025 season as Hardman is rehabbing an injury and Cooks remains unsigned.
The Bills did bring on some help, trading for deep threat DJ Moore and using a fourth-round draft pick on Skyler Bell.
Nathan Dougherty is a sports reporter covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins. Previously he wrote for the Rochester Business Journal and served as the assistant editor of athletic trade magazines Coaching Management, Athletic Management and Training & Conditioning. He is based out of Rochester, New York, and loves everything football. More about Nathan Dougherty
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