30 most important Bills players of 2026: No. 22 Joshua Palmer

As the Buffalo Bills prepare for the 2026 NFL season, Bills Wire will take a look at the most important contributors on their roster. The team has some cornerstone players who will be returning for another shot at bringing a Lombardi Trophy to Buffalo, and they'll have help from some new additions as well.

Leading up to the season, we will be counting down the top-30 most important players on the roster. We'll recap their 2025 season, look ahead to what they'll offer in 2026, and tackle the most pressing questions surrounding them this coming year.

Next on the countdown is Joshua Palmer.

Position: Wide receiver

Age at start of season: 26

Experience: Sixth year

2026 cap hit: $11,750,000

An injury in Week 6 of 2025 derailed Palmer's inaugural season with the Bills, and it was recently reported that multiple injuries actually occurred on that play, including a high-ankle sprain, an MCL sprain, and a slightly torn hip labrum. He and the Bills tried to manage the injuries, letting him rest a few games and ease back into action, but they were never able to get back on the right track, and he ended up being placed on injured reserve just a day prior to their AFC wild card playoff game at Jacksonville. He finished the year with 12 games played, 22 catches, and 303 yards.

Palmer will be looking to bounce back from injury in 2026, and he'll be vying for targets in the offense along with Keon Coleman, and behind already-established guys like DJ Moore, Dalton Kincaid, and Khalil Shakir.

Palmer was a full-go for the start of training camp this year after ending last season on IR. If he can provide the offense with his route-running and athleticism on a weekly basis, it would add another dynamic option to Joe Brady's "everybody eats" offense.

And, so far, so good for the former third-round pick by the Chargers. “I would say it’s going well," he said this preseason. "Just the timing with Josh [Allen] and with the missed time, you know, in your head you think you missed a lot and you haven’t played ball in a long time, but a long offseason getting healthy, and long OTAs continuing to get healthy... I feel as good as I’ve ever been.”

Check back as we continue the countdown on our list of the 30 most important Bills ahead of the 2026 season.

This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: 30 most important Bills players of 2026: No. 22 Joshua Palmer