The 2023 NFL regular season is officially done. The Buffalo Bills played the league's final regular season game on Sunday night and came away not only with the win but with the AFC East title and the AFC's number two seed in the playoffs. They are guaranteed at least two home playoff games and potentially a third, should the Baltimore Ravens slip up along the way.
For the last several weeks, I've tracked the Bills top graded players per Pro Football Focus and now it's time to reveal the team's top five offensive and defensive players for the regular season. I'll track the PFF grades throughout the playoffs as well, as long as the Bills continue their push.
It's been a wild and crazy regular season with the Bills needing to put together a five-game winning streak that included four of the five by just one score. The Bills showed their resiliency and determination. The defense found another level of play we haven't seen since the early weeks of the season. Now Buffalo will take that defense into the postseason, where they could be the difference.
There were a few players that were in the top five on both sides of the ball but had limited snaps, as they were role players or backups that got a little playing time. For example, offensive linemen David Edwards and Ryan Bates graded 82.7 and 78.7 respectively. Running backs Ty Johnson and Damien Harris graded 82.0 and 76.5, respectively. With that, here are your Pro Football Focus's highest-graded Buffalo Bills in 2023.
Bills top-graded offensive players
1. Josh Allen - 91.3
Josh Allen may not win the league's MVP award but he's Bills Mafia MVP and is Buffalo personified. There may not have ever been a more beloved Buffalo Bill in the team's history and that's saying a lot. If this young man gets this team to a Super Bowl and wins it, there will undoubtedly be a statue of him erected somewhere in Buffalo. His 91.3 grade is the highest grade awarded from PFF by any quarterback.
2. Stefon Diggs - 81.1
There has been a lot of talk over the last few weeks about Stefon Diggs' decline in production but according to PFF, he was one of the best offensive players on the team. His 81.1 grade ranks him 18th among NFL receivers. He finished the season with 107 receptions, 1,183 yards and eight touchdowns. He was targeted 160 times and while the numbers were down over the last half of the season, the team will need him to make some plays to advance in the postseason.
3. Khalil Shakir - 75.3
Khalil Shakir has been a revelation in 2023. Early in the season, he seemed to be an afterthought, receiving only about ten percent of the snaps in Week One but as the season progressed, he started to get more involved in the offense. You could see the trust that Allen has in Shakir grow each week and Shakir has become an integral part of this offense. Shakir's PFF grade of 75.3 ranks 33rd among receivers. He finished the regular season with 39 receptions on 45 targets, 611 yards and two touchdowns. His 86.6 catch rate was tops in the NFL and I fully expect him to be a vital part of the Bills' postseason run.
4. Dion Dawkins - 73.7
Dion Dawkins is another player who is supremely loved by Bills Mafia. He's had an incredible season and dominated. After a sub-par 2022 season, he bounced back and helped the Bills offensive line become the best line in the Coach McDermott era. He was in on 689 pass plays and gave up only one sack and seven total quarterback hits. Dawkins' 73.7 PFF grade ranks 24th among tackles.
5. James Cook - 71.8
James Cook took over the lead back role this season and did not disappoint, becoming the first Bills' 1,000-yard rusher since LeSean McCoy. Cook's 1,122 yards ranked fourth in the league and was sixth in all-purpose yards with 1,567 yards, adding six total touchdowns. His PFF grade ranks him 29th among all running backs.
Bills top-graded defensive players
1. Tyrel Dodson - 89.5
I'm pretty sure no one saw this coming. Second-year linebacker, Terrel Bernard won the pre-season battle for the starting middle linebacker role but when Matt Milano went down, someone had to step up, and that someone was Tyrel Dodson. He's had a fantastic season, finishing the year with 74 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and eight tackles for a loss. His 89.5 PFF grade ranks third among all linebackers.
2. DaQuan Jones - 86.0
DaQuan Jones missed a lot of time, but he's been simply phenomenal and his return to the lineup the last two weeks was massive. Now he is ready to rock for the playoffs and help the Bills' defensive front remain dominant and torment the opposing quarterbacks. His PFF grade of 86 doesn't rank among defensive tackles because he only had 174 total snaps, but he's been one of the most dominant when he was on the field.
3. Greg Rousseau - 85.6
Greg Rousseau's run defense grade of 78.3 ranked among the best run-defenders at the edge positions this year. His overall grade of 85.6 ranks 15th among edge defenders. He's yet another example that Brandon Beane knows what he's doing, and Rousseau's pass rush skills will only continue to develop. He finished 2023 with 42 total tackles, five sacks, and 13 tackles for a loss. He also contributed 55 total pressures this season.
4. Rasul Douglas - 82.2
The acquisition of Rasul Douglas cannot be overstated. Hopefully, he'll be ok going forward after sustaining an injury in the Dolphins game because the Bills need his ball-hawking play in the playoffs. His PFF grade of 82.2 ranks eighth among all corners. He recorded 57 total tackles and had five interceptions. He also allowed a quarterback rating of only 70.5 when targeted.
5. Christian Benford - 82.2
The Bills are in a great place right now with Christian Benford also coming in with a grade of 82.2, and again is eighth best in the NFL. With Douglas under contract next season and Benford continuing to grow, the Bills will have one of the best corner duos in the league. Benford recorded 51 total tackles, two interceptions, and forced a couple of fumbles. Also, per PFF, was credited with only one missed tackle all season.