Buffalo Bills’ DC Leslie Frazier sheds light on new-look defense
By Ryan Brennan
Leslie Frazier, who is entering his first season as defensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills, recently appeared on Late Hits.
It’s a SiriusXM NFL Radio show — Late Hits — hosted by Alex Marvez (SportingNews.com) and Bill Polian, a former Buffalo Bills’ general manager. They recently had new Bills’ defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier on the show to talk about his defense.
A lot of points were discussed and a lot of information was given by Frazier. He gave a sneak peek at a lot of positions that currently have question marks, naming who the defensive starters would be if the season started today.
First, the most pressing position battles are at linebacker. According to Frazier, the three starters would be Lorenzo Alexander, Preston Brown and Ramon Humber. He loves that he gets to work with Lorenzo Alexander, calling him a “young man who had a tremendous season” and is looking forward to using him at linebacker or as a rusher.
Frazier expects Humber to give him “quality snaps,” but there’s still a possibility that Reggie Ragland steals some of those snaps with a strong outing this training camp. Even if Ragland lands a spot at middle linebacker, Preston Brown would likely move to the outside, further limiting Humber.
Frazier expects a lot out of Brown, saying he’s a player with “a ton of potential” and wants him to be “a leader for us in our 4-3 scheme.”
Either way, we can expect to see all four of these guys — Alexander, Ragland, Brown, Humber — a lot this season.
Moving to the defensive backs, Frazier had some nice words for rookie Tre’Davious White. “He’s a guy who did a great job at LSU and everything that we saw throughout the offseason, he hasn’t disappointed. We’re hoping that he can really come along for us,” said Frazier.
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White is expected to start alongside Ronald Darby at cornerback, but there’s still a possibility that a veteran steals some spotlight while the rookie adjusts. So far, we’ve seen good adjustment from the rookie, but things change when the pads come on.
As for the defensive line, Frazier really enjoys working with Jerry Hughes — who has had his glory days in a 4-3 scheme. Hughes will be on the line using his speed to rush the passer, which means more sacks from him in 2017. Here’s what Frazier said about Hughes:
"“I’m excited about Jerry and some of the things I saw this offseason. Bill, you know the importance of the 4-3 having a guy who can rush the passer without you having to blitz all the time. I really believe that Jerry is going to give us that off the edge. He had an outstanding off-season. Did a great job in the weight room, did a great job with everything that our strength and conditioning coaches asked him to do and was terrific throughout all of our OTAs. So I’m excited about Jerry playing end for us.”"
With a simplified defense, the rest of the defensive line will follow suit and players like Marcell Dareus and Shaq Lawson will find success right away.
There’s a ton to be excited about, but the most exciting of all is the fact that training camp is just two weeks away. Football is right around the corner and that means a new opportunity for this city to end the playoff drought.
We’ll see if Leslie Frazier can help this defense win championships.
Next: Evaluating the Bills' quarterback situation ahead of camp
Who do you think will start at linebacker come Week 1 vs. the Jets? Leave your thoughts below!