Buffalo Bills: Making the case to sign free agent Tyus Bowser

The Buffalo Bills are likely to need to find a replacement for Matt Milano this offseason but a player like Tyus Bowser could be the answer to replacing a linebacker that actually left the team last year. Let’s make the case for the Bills to pursue the Baltimore Ravens free agent linebacker.

Career

Tyus Bowser was a second round pick by the Baltimore Ravens and he didn’t see the field much on defense the first two years in the league, playing around only 15% of the defensive snaps during that stretch.

The past two years though he saw his role expand and was playing upwards of 50% of the defensive snaps for the Ravens. During that time he had seven sacks, 58 total tackles and three interceptions.

Why he might be a good fit for the Buffalo Bills

The pass rush last year was underwhelming and one of the reasons, and this isn’t often discussed, is the absence of Lorenzo Alexander. The veteran linebacker retired after the 2019 season and had been a versatile piece that Sean McDermott could move around to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

The final two years with the Bills, Alexander had 8.5 sacks and 34 QB pressures while being sent on 74 blitzes.

Last year, the team tried to use A.J. Klein in more of this role and while he did find some success in the second half of the year, he doesn’t have the same size as Alexander or even Tyus Bowser, who is 6’3 and 242 pounds.

The reason that Bowser is an excellent fit for the Buffalo Bills is that he brings a little more in terms of pass coverage than Alexander did in the final years of his career. While he may not be at the same level of Matt Milano, he certainly wouldn’t be a liability on the field.

The addition of Tyus Bowser could give the Buffalo Bills another player that could drastically improve the pass rush at the fraction of the cost to acquire a defensive end. He also has more versatility than some of the other linebackers in free agency.