New Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane continues to be active with the NFL regular season looming.
After shipping off several of the team's best players, Beane made another surprising move on Monday by trading linebacker Reggie Ragland to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2019 fourth-round pick, both teams announced to NFL.com.
Ragland, a former SEC Defensive Player of the Year at Alabama, was selected in the second-round of the 2016 NFL Draft but missed his entire rookie season after suffering a torn ACL in training camp.
The former Crimson Tide standout was not believed to be a fit in Sean McDermott's new defensive scheme, according to NFL.com's Connor Orr. NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport also noted that Ragland had been on the trading block for most of the summer, though the team waited to get the best value in return.
Around The NFL's Marc Sessler pegged the Chiefs as a potential landing spot for the linebacker two weeks ago, noting the team's lack of depth at the position.
Ragland, who was drafted by former Bills coach Rex Ryan, will now play in Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton's 3-4 scheme, which should be a better fit as its closer to the one he excelled in at Alabama. Sutton also served as Ryan's long-time linebackers coach during his tenure with the New York Jets.
In recent weeks, Beane and new coach Sean McDermott have made several attempts to change the Ryan-era culture by cracking down on rules and removing the team's locker room ping pong table, as well as making several transactions.
Just over two weeks ago, the Bills traded former No. 4 overall pick Sammy Watkins to the Los Angeles Rams and 2015 second-round pick Ronald Darby to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The team also traded former Ohio State standout and 2016 fourth-round pick Cardale Jones to the Los Angeles Chargers in exchange for a conditional draft pick earlier this month.
