ORCHARD PARK - Gabe Davis has very likely played his last game as a member of the Buffalo Bills, at least that’s the vibe that was emanating from him Monday when he was packing up his belongings for his offseason of uncertainty.

“Always open to coming back; I mean this is my first place, I’ve been with the Bills for the past four years,” Davis said. “I love Buffalo, I love everything about it. But I feel like I definitely gotta go to March and see the other options as well. I feel like that’s the business side of it and I gotta take advantage of it.”

What the 24-year-old will fetch on the open market is unknown, but there will be teams interested in a 6-foot-2, 225-pound wide receiver who across his first four NFL seasons caught 163 passes for 2,730 yards and 27 touchdowns, then added 22 receptions for 474 yards and six TDs in the postseason.

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And one reason they’ll be attracted is because he produced those decent numbers despite always playing second fiddle to Stefon Diggs, and then this past season becoming a player who was relied on more for his run blocking and his ability to run clearing routes rather than for his own pass catching and playmaking skills.

Davis’ time in Buffalo was enigmatic to say the least. There were times when he played like a star, never more so than the 13 seconds debacle in January 2022 at Kansas City when he became the first player in NFL history to catch four TD passes in a playoff game while going for 201 yards.

There were seven other games of 100 yards or more yards including the playoff win over Miami last year, too, but then there were so many more games where Davis was a non factor - 36 where he totaled fewer than 40 yards.

Ultimately, he was a 2020 fourth-round draft pick so maybe this is what we should have all expected, a good but not great player. But Bills fans naturally expected more because for most of his time here, he was a starter (51 out of 71 games counting the postseason) and starters aren’t supposed to have zero-catch games (there were five alone in 2023).

“It can be frustrating at times,” said Davis, who this year had 12 games where he caught three passes or less. “Anyway I can help the team win is what I’ll do and I feel like that’s what they felt my role would be here so that’s what I sort of did.”

His teammates and coaches loved his work ethic and praised him up and down for the way he accepted whatever role he was given and that should not be ignored. But while it wasn’t always his fault - whether it was game plan, in-game play calling, or just where Josh Allen’s progression took him - the fact is that the Bills need more production from their No. 2 receiver, especially with Stefon Diggs now 30 years old and beginning to decline based on the final three months of 2023.

“Gabe’s a good player in this league, whether you want to call him a No. 2 or number whatever you want to call him, he’s a good player,” general manager Brandon Beane said. “He’s earned the right … to see where his market’s at. We’d be a fool not to want him back, but it has to work for him, it has to work for us.”

What he meant by that, obviously, was money. Given the Bills’ unhealthy salary cap situation, it’s highly unlikely they would get into a bidding war for Davis and will prefer to get younger, cheaper and yes, better, at the position via the draft.

Davis is one of 22 unrestricted free agents who will have the chance to find new situations for themselves. They also include:

• WR Trent Sherfield

• QB Kyle Allen

• RB Damien Harris

• RB Ty Johnson

• RB Latavius Murray

• OL David Edwards

• DE A.J. Epenesa

• DE Leonard Floyd

• DT Poona Ford

• DT DaQuan Jones

• DT Linval Joseph

• DE Shaq Lawson,

• DT Tim Settle

• DT Jordan Phillips

• LB Tyrel Dodson

• LB A.J. Klein

• LB/ST Tyler Matakevich

• FS Micah Hyde

• CB Dane Jackson

• DB Cam Lewis

• SS Taylor Rapp

A closer look reveals that the only regular starters are Davis, Floyd, Jones, Dodson and Hyde so it’s not a situation that will gut the roster. However, a good chunk of the team’s depth, particularly on the defensive line, is represented on this list so Beane and coach Sean McDermott have a lot of important work to do as they retool for another run at an AFC East title, and more.

One way they will do it is to employ a similar strategy to last year: Bring in mid-tier veteran players on one-year deals to fill spots.

Eleven of their current free agents came from outside the organization and signed one-year contracts as unrestricted free agents last spring. Joseph and Klein joined the team during the season, and Jackson, Lewis and Dodson all signed for one year as restricted free agents.

“That’s one of the strategies that we’ll have to do,” Beane said. “We don’t have the same money we had going into 2019, 2020. But we will work around it. We’re not planning to take a year off and just not be competitive. I’m not laying my head down tonight going, ‘We don’t have a shot at it next year.’”

Players who most likely won’t be back

This is the group that I believe is absolutely gone, whether the reason is age, high cost to re-sign, or lack of production.

● Gabe Davis: More than anything, I think he wants to start over with another team.

● Micah Hyde: He’s 33 years old, is still bothered by his 2022 neck surgery, and it seems like he is considering retirement. What a great player and career he had in Buffalo, but it’s over.

● A.J. Epenesa: He was a decent rotation piece on the D-line, but he never lived up to being a 2020 second-round pick and like Davis, a fresh start would be a good idea for him.

● Leonard Floyd: He came right out and said it Monday: “For me I’m always going where the money goes. I’d rather be here, but it is what it is. It’s a business. I’m gonna go wherever my agent feels like we get the most the most money from.” That won’t be from Buffalo.

● DaQuan Jones: The Bills need to get younger and he’s 32. And again, there will be a team that ponies up more than the Bills will be able to offer.

● Poona Ford: He was expected to be a solid backup to Jones, but he wound up being a healthy scratch nine times plus both playoff games. He probably wants nothing to do with returning.

● Latavius Murray: He just turned 34, and the Bills can find a younger RB to pass protect on third down.

● Trent Sherfield: After a nice 2022 season in Miami, he never found his footing in the Bills offense. Wide receiver is a position the Bills desperately need to upgrade.

● Linval Joseph: The 35-year-old got off his couch in November and gave the Bills some depth at DT, but he was not really much of a help.

● A.J. Klein: Same thing as Joseph. He was cut after training camp, then was called back a couple times when injuries struck, but his inadequate performance against the Chiefs should be the final one in Buffalo.

● Jordan Phillips: Enough already with the team’s best crowd-prompting cheerleader. The production level was next to nothing.

Players who the Bills should explore bringing back

In this bucket are players who, in most cases, won’t be returning, but a case can be made for all of them to come back if there’s mutual interest and the price is right.

● Kyle Allen: Being Josh Allen’s backup is a drag because the superstar is an indestructible force. Kyle might seek a place where he has a better chance to play, but he’s also buddies with Josh so maybe he stays.

● Damien Harris: I liked this signing when it happened, but then he suffered a season-ending neck injury and we never really saw him play. He’s only 26 and it might be worth re-upping, especially with Murray being gone. What might alter this is RB Nyheim Hines who missed all of 2023 with a knee injury but is under contract and expected back in 2024.

● Ty Johnson: He replaced Harris in the RB room and I liked what he gave the offense when he played. Maybe he’s the best option as RB2 or RB3 instead of Harris of Hines.

● Tim Settle: He was signed as a free agent in 2022 but his two years in Buffalo were pretty disappointing. However, if the price is manageable, he’s still only 26 and as a fourth DT he might fit.

● David Edwards: A solid option as a backup guard is nice to have, plus he became a de facto blocking TE this year and played 161 snaps in that role. However, he may be looking for an opportunity to get back to being just a guard.

● Shaq Lawson: He’s like an ant at a picnic; you can’t get rid of him. He has become a serial one-year contract guy and the Bills might do it again because they love him as a depth piece and for his enthusiasm in the locker room.

● Tyrel Dodson: He made nice strides when he took over for Matt Milano so the Bills might want to bring him back as a depth piece behind Milano and Terrel Bernard. I don’t expect his market to be flush.

● Dane Jackson: Another good depth player at CB who at various points over the last couple years started for injured Tre’Davious White, Christian Benford and Rasul Douglas.

● Cam Lewis: The former University at Buffalo star has been with the Bills four years and they love his versatility, but this is the first time he’s unrestricted and there may be other teams to choose from.

● Taylor Rapp: Another of the one-year signings who underperformed, though he played much more than Ford. The Bills have a big need at safety so he at least has to be considered an option to bring back as backup.

● Tyler Matakevich: He’s a solid special teams player who will probably generate little market interest and won’t cost much, so why not?

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana. To subscribe to Sal's newsletter, Bills Blast, which comes out each Friday during the offseason, please follow this link: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Gabe Davis headlines Buffalo Bills' 22 free agents: Who should stay, go