Buffalo Bills: 4 players who stood out against the Chicago Bears
A.J. Epenesa
The Buffalo Bills’ first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft consistently asserted his presence on the field in the first half. A.J. Epenesa was a bulldozer at times exhibiting exceptional strength and pass rush ability.
Epenesa wore the trousers in his first half action against the Bears. He disrupted quarterback Andy Dalton and prevented any scrambling lanes.
The Bills could only benefit from Epenesa developing into a top tier pass rusher. With the depth and investment on Buffalo’s defensive line, this pass rush should terrify opposing quarterbacks in the upcoming regular season.
Boogie Basham
Buffalo’s second round pick in the ’21 NFL Draft popped on the stat sheet. Basham accounted for three solo tackles, a sack, and a blocked PAT. The penetration and run-stopping ability he demonstrated furnishes Buffalo’s defense with the missing piece from a year ago to their defensive front.
Boogie Basham used all of his 34-inch vertical to get a piece of extra point attempt by Bears for the block. Basham, who played a lot of special teams at Wake in college had a blocked kick for Demon Deacons as well. #Bills
— Chris Brown (@ChrisBrownBills) August 21, 2021
The Bills’ defensive line was upper class on Saturday. Basham effectively rushed the passer and stopped runners for loss on a couple of occasions. He assuredly carved out a role for himself on the defensive line.
Buffalo likes to use a rotation on their defensive front and Basham’s solidity in the trenches could give the Bills just what they drafted come regular-season action.