Fielding a top-ten defense in Buffalo is nothing new for Coach McDermott and the Bills. The unit has been top-ten in terms of yards in five of McDermott's seven seasons in Buffalo and top-five three of those. As far as points allowed, the Bills have been top-five four times, I think it's safe to say that McDermott knows a thing or two about coaching defense. However, he'll be without two guys that he's had in Buffalo since his arrival, Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde. It's still unknown if Hyde will retire or not, but for now, we're operating under the premise that he won't be returning.
Cbssports.com writer, Jared Dubin recently ranked the NFL's 32 defenses based on the likelihood they field a top-ten defense in 2024. He separated the respective teams into multiple categories, ranging from "most unlikely" to "most likely". He put the Bills in the "somewhat likely" category. This is a logical ranking too. The Bills, despite missing potentially both of the starting safeties from the past seven seasons, are still returning the majority of the defense, and they should get Matt Milano back.
Dubin addressed the loss of Hyde and Poyer, but added "...Matt Milano, Terrel Bernard, Greg Rousseau, and Ed Oliver are still here. Sean McDermott is as well. And this has been a pretty consistent top-flight defense when healthy." And he doesn't even mention a fully healthy DaQuan Jones. This is a point I've been trying to drive home during some of our recent podcast episodes. It seems most of the national media and even some fans are sleeping on the Bills' defense. But make no mistake, this unit will still be a solid group in 2024.
Key players that could elevate the Buffalo Bills defense in 2024
The Bills have added a couple of pieces via the draft that could play a significant role as well, with safety Cole Bishop and edge-rusher Javon Solomon. If these two can contribute meaningful and impactful snaps, and Von Miller gets back to his former self, the Bills could not only be a top-ten defense but might find themselves somewhere in the top five. Don't count out Coach Sean McDermott and his coaching impact on this defense in 2024.