Starter (Left Tackle): Dion Dawkins
Dawkins finally turned into the tackle last season that the Buffalo Bills were waiting for him to be. He really turned a corner and is regarded as one of the more physical tackles in the league.
There is no doubt Dawkins will be the left tackle for next season, and was arguably their best player on a much improved line last season. With right tackle a bit of a question mark at this point, the Bills have at least one side of its line shored up.
Allowing four sacks last season, an improvement from his seven allowed the year prior, Dawkins was tough to beat off the edge. Cutting down on penalties should be a priority this season, as he took 11, which ranked as the 8th most in the whole league. A mark he will want to improve on to become elite at the position.
Going into a contract year, look for Dawkins to come out firing and earn a brand new extension with the Buffalo Bills this season.
Starter (Right Tackle): Cody Ford
Cody Ford wasn’t great in 2020, but being a rookie some of his performance can be understood. Now with a full season with the Bills in his back pocket, along with an odd offseason due to a global pandemic, Ford will be without a doubt more prepared than last season.
He has the makeup of the “ideal” Buffalo Bills offensive lineman. He’s big, mean, tough and always finishes his blocks. Ford is a behemoth in the run game which was his strength during the season, but he struggled in pass protection where he allowed seven sacks.
#GoBills OL Cody Ford explains his unnecessary roughness penalty after Josh Allen was dumped by Lorenzo Carter near the end of the first half.
— J.T. Messinger (@JTMessinger) September 15, 2019
"I just had to let him know that I got my QB's back, and if anything else goes down, I'm here."@WGRZ pic.twitter.com/daxk8O9wTm
Above, from earlier in the season versus the New York Giants, Ford stuck up for Josh Allen when he was hit late out of bounds. He was not happy at the treatment of his quarterback and he ended up taking an unnecessary roughness penalty. Ford reiterated why he did it after the game, and this is why the Buffalo Bills love what they have in him.