Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane has stated multiple times that the team’s philosophy was to draft, develop and sign their own players.

So far that plan has worked well for Buffalo, but the team is getting close to the “sign their own players” stage. Tre’Davious White, Dion Dawkins and Matt Milano are three players from Sean McDermott’s first draft class that are all in line for big paydays. Buffalo can hold off on White by picking up his fifth-year option, but Milano and Dawkins are both entering the final year of their rookie contracts. Considering how well they have played, both players are in line for significant pay raises.

In an appearance on One Bills Live on Wednesday, Beane was asked by Steve Tasker about contract negotiations for the left tackle and outside linebacker. While Beane did not want to go too far into detail, he acknowledged that some conversations have taken place.

“Matt and Dion, they have the same representative so that’s a one call, one-stop shop," Beane told Tasker. "Yeah, definitely have been in contact. You know, I don’t really like to get into negotiations too much, but I’ve definitely been in contact with their representatives giving them timelines of when we would look at things like that.”

Both Milano and Dawkins are repped by Lagardere Unlimited.

After discussing that his focus is currently on the 2020 NFL Draft, Beane gave a hint as to when new deals with Dawkins and Milano could take place.

“If you look at our history I’ve generally done most of those guys—we did do Jordan before that, before we hit free agency beyond that—most of the guys I’ve done from Jerry Hughes, Eric Wood, (Stephen) Hauschka and some of those guys we’ve done more in the spring/summer time frame.”

Dawkins has been the Bills’ starting left tackle since joining the team as a second round pick. He played well as a rookie, but took a step back in year two. Last year, however, was Dawkins’ best season as a pro.

Milano, a former fifth-round pick, has played in 44 games over three seasons while recording 33 starts. He has improved yearly and arguably performed at a Pro Bowl level in the past two seasons. He has recorded 228 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, 18 passes defensed and four interceptions in his young career.

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