Buffalo Bills: 3 Positions on defense to improve this offseason
Defensive Line
The most obvious weakness the 2020 Buffalo Bills continued to put on tape was their inability to consistently stop the run. Since about Week 8, the defense got much better at stopping the run relative to how they played in their first 8 games.
There were two main causes that affected the Bills defense to struggle through the early portion of the season. The first was the absence of 1-technique defensive tackle Star Lotulelei, who opted out of the 2020 season. The second cause or causes were the injuries to Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds early in the season. Milano missed a lot of time this year with multiple injuries, but Edmunds was banged up early in the season with a bad shoulder and improved greatly as the season progressed. The combination of lacking a true 1-technique and poor linebacker play was a large reason safety Jordan Poyer, on the 3rd level of the defense, was leading the team in tackles through the early part of the season.
Without a true 1-technique defensive tackle the Bills were forced to rely on Harrison Phillips, Vernon Butler, and Ed Oliver to fill that void. Out of these three Oliver was asked to change his game the most. Oliver is a great pass rushing interior defensive lineman, but without a true run stopper next to him he was forced to pay more attention to the run instead of pinning his ears back and firing to the quarterback.
In addition to struggling against the run, the defensive line struggled to create pressure on the quarterback consistently throughout the season. If this defense wants to take the next step it needs to be able to apply good pressure to the quarterback without blitzing, just the four down linemen.
After drafting A.J. Epenesa in the second round last year, it’s obvious the Bills would like to get younger on the defensive line. However, Epenesa may not be a permanent answer as an edge rusher. There’s always a chance he develops very quickly into a big threat off the edge, but as of now, it seems he will be a solid defensive line contributor on a cheap rookie deal.
Given the age of key defensive line contributors Jerry Hughes, Mario Addison, and Star Letulelei, spending a high draft pick on a defensive lineman seems even more likely. The Bills may decide to cut some cap casualties on the line like Addison, Butler, or Quinton Jefferson. If the Bills decide to do this it will be even more reason to reinforce the defensive line with young talent through the draft.
Looking forward to the draft, there aren’t a lot of 1-technique defensive tackles to get excited about in comparison to the number of edge rushers. The Bills may take another year to solve the eventual replacement of Star Lotulelei, but instead, they should try to find a young pass rusher to play opposite of Hughes and eventually take the torch from him.
Some edge rushers to look into include, Gregory Rousseau, Patrick Jones II, Quincy Roche, Carlos Basham Jr., and Joseph Ossai. If the Bills decide to draft reinforcements on the interior of the defensive line some guys to look into are Tyler Shelvin, Christian Barmore, Marvin Wilson and Jay Tufele.