Over the past few seasons, one of the Buffalo Bills’ weaknesses has been being able to stop the run. Part of the scheme that Sean McDermott has tried to implement is allowing the linebackers to fly around on the field for coverage and to blitz while the defensive lineman try to take on the double teams upfront.
That has not been the case for sometime now as the Bills will have various games where they give up a good amount of yards on the ground. In 2022, the Bills defense gave up 1,673 yards on the ground which ranked as the fourth best across the league (only behind the 49ers, Ravens, and Titans).
While that may seem impressive, the Bills did allow over 100 rushing yards in six games (including against the Cincinnati Bengals in the divisional round of the playoffs) and also allowed over 200 rushing yards in one game against the Green Bay Packers. During a three week stretch from Week 8 to Week 10, the Bills gave up a total of 529 rushing yards and they went 1-2 in that stretch.
Before the Ed Oliver extension this offseason, the Bills did not have anyone under contract past 2023 at the defensive tackle position. Heading into 2023, they will have Oliver, DaQuan Jones, Poona Ford, Tim Settle and Jordan Phillips as notable names who are more than likely to suit up for the season.
The defense will need to find a way to stop the run and create interior pressure if they want to help out Josh Allen and the offense. Here are three questions that could be circling around the defensive tackles going into training camp.