Veteran offensive lineman Richie Incognito said he has learned from the high-profile bullying scandal involving former Miami Dolphins teammate Jonathan Martin and views signing with the Buffalo Bills as his "last chance."
"I told them what I had learned from the whole situation," Incognito wrote in a text to NFL.com, "that I needed to respect those around me more and that I needed to realize I may find things funny that other find offensive. This whole learning process was about becoming self-aware. About becoming a better person/teammate/leader.
"We mutually expressed that this would be my last chance and we should look at it as a positive," he added. "Take the opportunity to bring attention to a sensitive subject while proving to people that I'm not a racist jerk. We talked about possible ways to turn this situation around and ways we can impact the community. We had a good talk for about an hour. They met separately. They then came back and said they would like me to be part of the organization."
The Bills agreed to a deal in principle with Incognito, the team announced Saturday. The deal is for one year and $2.25 million, a source told ESPN.com.
Incognito, 31, last played for the Dolphins in 2013.
He was selected by St. Louis in the third round of the 2005 draft. He failed to sign a contract with the Rams until Week 3 of his rookie season and then missed the rest of the year after being placed on the team's non-football injury list.
Incognito spent the next three-plus seasons in St. Louis before wearing out his welcome. The Rams placed him on waivers, and he was claimed by Buffalo. Incognito played three games with the Bills but was not re-signed, and he joined the Dolphins in the following offseason. Overall, he has appeared in 102 games.
ESPN.com Bills reporter Mike Rodak, ESPN.com Dolphins reporter James Walker and The Associated Press contributed to this report.