Entering last season, the Buffalo Bills were expected to continue their defensive dominance from the previous few seasons. Since Sean McDermott took over, the Bills have ranked near the top of the league as a defense and in 2019 they finished third in total yards allowed and second in points allowed.
The idea that they would remain a Top 5 defense wasn’t too hard to imagine considering the key parts of the coaching staff, McDermott and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier were returning, along with almost the entire starting defense.
While the Buffalo Bills as a team had success, the defense took a step backward. They would finish the year close to the middle, in particular 16th in points allowed and 14th in total yards allowed.
Entering this season, the Bills defense once again is bringing back almost their starting lineup which could be a good thing. Matt Milano during minicamp talked about where they were as a group and that the focus was more on the finer points versus trying to learn the playbook, where some teams are with personnel or coaching changes.
This is one of the first reasons that I believe the Buffalo Bills should be able to bounce back this year. They are ahead of the curve in comparison to other teams in the NFL at this point of the offseason. They are fine-tuning what they are doing rather than trying to learn a new scheme or become familiar with a new teammate.
Now a case could be made that the Buffalo Bills had this advantage last year. However, this is only one piece of the puzzle and these additional three reasons, along with this one listed, should help bring this defense back to the top of the league.