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Buffalo Bills: Player grades for the 2019 Bills’ defense

By Brandon Croce

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 15: Levi Wallace #39 of the Buffalo Bills celebrates with his defensive teammates after catching an interception in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 15, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 15: Levi Wallace #39 of the Buffalo Bills celebrates with his defensive teammates after catching an interception in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 15, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
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NASHVILLE, TN – OCTOBER 06: Jordan Phillips #97 of the Buffalo Bills celebrates a sack against Marcus Mariota #8 of the Tennessee Titans (not pictured) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium on October 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN – OCTOBER 06: Jordan Phillips #97 of the Buffalo Bills celebrates a sack against Marcus Mariota #8 of the Tennessee Titans (not pictured) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium on October 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /

Defensive Tackles

Jordan Phillips

This season it was rookie Ed Oliver who fans couldn’t wait to see and had a great deal of excitement surrounding him. However, it was Phillips, who stepped up after Harrison Phillips season ending injury, who stole the show and was one of this defense’s best players.

He finished the year with a team leading 9.5 sacks and was a constant force in the middle of this defensive line by collapsing the pocket and disrupting opposing quarterbacks.

Grade: A

Ed Oliver

As mentioned above, Oliver entered the year with a great deal of fanfare. He was one of the most exciting prospects in this rookie class and with his quickness and explosiveness drew comparisons to Aaron Donald. However, there was a learning curve for the rookie and it wasn’t until the second half of the year that he really started to have an impact.

He finished the year with 43 total tackles and five sacks, however four of them came in the team’s final seven regular season games. The hope is that he can build off this strong finish going into his second year.

Grade: B-

Star Lotulelei

One of the first free agent signings by the Brandon Beane front office was defensive tackle Star Lotulelei, who seemingly never lived up to his large contract in 2018. However, this past season he started to make impact plays with two sacks as well as an interception, the first of his career.

However, this is not why Lotulelei was signed. He is expected to be an anchor in the middle of this defense, eat up blockers and allow the other players around him room to make the play. In this regard, he does this well and should continue to do that in 2020.

Grade: B+

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