The Buffalo Bills’ secondary used to be solid a few seasons ago but recently, it’s been shaky due to inconsistency and injuries. In the early 2020s, the Bills had players in their prime like Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, and Tre’Davious White. While White is with the Bills again after being away last season, he’s past his prime but can still be serviceable.
The Bills have now tried to revamp their secondary the last two offseasons and while they have some spark, the unit has become a bit of a weakness. The good news is that they have their lockdown CB1 in Christian Benford and a hopeful promising rookie in Max Hairston for the future. They also have young corners in Jordan Hancock and Dorian Strong, but they face an uphill battle to get onto the field.
At safety, Buffalo has Taylor Rapp who is a serviceable safety and the best one that the team has. Then they have second-year player Cole Bishop along with Damar Hamlin, Darrick Forrest, and Cam Lewis. The depth for sure is there, but there are more questions than answers for this unit going into this season.
Bills' secondary labeled as team's biggest challenge heading into 2025 season
Jared Dubin from CBS Sports recently listed the Bills’ defensive back room as Buffalo’s biggest challenge going into this season, and unfortunately, Dubin is spot on. Here’s what Dubin said about this unit:
"The Bills have some uncertainty at cornerback at the moment. First-round pick Maxwell Hairston is dealing with an LCL sprain. The other options at that spot are retreads in old friend Tre'Davious White and Dane Jackson, or 2025 sixth-rounder Dorian Strong. That spot is very much in flux alongside Christian Benford on the outside and Taron Johnson in the slot. And Buffalo certainly hopes to get better safety play out of the trio of Damar Hamlin, Taylor Rapp and last year's second-round pick, Cole Bishop."Jared Dubin, CBS Sports
The injuries are piling up already with Max Hairston and Cole Bishop. Not to mention, this unit in the past has become a bit inconsistent and arguably has been the reason why Buffalo has lost games over the past few seasons.
With defensive coordinator Bobby Babich having a year under his belt of calling the plays, this coming season will really show us what kind of impact he can bring against the pass. It’s not very often that the Bills lose but when they do, it tends to be in high-scoring games because the defense can’t stop the pass.