Buffalo Bills announce the signing of two defensive tackles

The Buffalo Bills on Tuesday announced the signing of two defensive tackles to add to the depth at the position. The first player is Eli Ankou, who reportedly was in Buffalo earlier this week working out with the team for a second time this offseason.

Ankou is a big defensive tackle at 6’3″ and 325 pounds that could backup Star Lotulelei as a one-tech for this defense. He entered the league in 2017 as an undrafted free agent with the Houston Texans and the Buffalo Bills will be his seventh team over the past four years. However, he has played in regular season games with only three of those teams (Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, and Dallas Cowboys).

In his career, Ankou has 31 total tackles, two tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks in 27 career games.

Ankou wasn’t the only defensive tackle the team signed as the Bills also announced they added Nazair Jones. He previously was with the Seattle Seahawks, who drafted him in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Jones played in 20 games between 2017 and 2018 and has 26 career tackles, two sacks, one interception, one forced fumble.

The former University of North Carolina defensive tackle missed the 2019 season after being placed on injured reserve. He was released last offseason and didn’t play in the NFL last season.

As a prospect in the 2017 NFL Draft, Jones was viewed as more of a three-technique tackle according to Pro Football Focus. However, he was considered to be a good run defender and this is an area the Buffalo Bills could use improvement after struggling to stop the run.

The two defensive tackles bring the Buffalo Bills total to nine on their roster. These moves should help add depth to the position as the team heads into training camp and then the three preseason games they have on the schedule this year.