Buffalo Bills: Ed Oliver named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 12
For the second straight week, the Buffalo Bills had a player named AFC Defensive Player of the Week. In Week 11, it was linebacker Matt Milano for his performance against the Cleveland Browns and this week it is teammate Ed Oliver after an impressive game against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.
Oliver finished that game with six total tackles, two tackles for a loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and a safety. That safety in the third quarter was pivotal to the Bills’ coming away with the win over the Lions.
This was Ed Oliver’s first career AFC Defensive Player of the Week award.
The Buffalo Bills PR Department tweeted, this is the first time in franchise history that a player has had a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and a safety in one game. It also is only the fourth time in NFL history this stat line has occurred and Oliver joins Khalil Mack, Justin Houston, and Cameron Wake to achieve that.
Ed Oliver can be a big x-factor for this Buffalo Bills’ defense down the stretch
The Buffalo Bills drafted Ed Oliver in the Top 10 of the 2019 NFL Draft because he is an incredibly athletic defensive tackle and with his explosiveness, these are the type of games he can have. Unfortunately, he hasn’t always been able to play at this level earlier in his career and was inconsistent.
The Bills are going to be needing more of this from Ed Oliver down the stretch this season, especially with Von Miller’s injury and what he brings to pressuring the quarterback. The past three games have been much better for Oliver in this regard as he has 1.5 sacks and seven QB hits compared to only four QB hits and no sacks in the first five games.
In a pivotal year for Ed Oliver as he could be looking for a contract extension after the season, the former first round pick is playing some of his best football.
