The Buffalo Bills’ 2025 campaign didn’t end the way anyone in Western New York wanted. There’s a level of pride that comes with reaching the postseason, but after so many heartbreaking finishes, it doesn’t make it any easier to look back on what most other franchises would consider a successful season.
But, another long offseason stands between the 2025 version of the Bills and whatever the 2026 version may look like with a new head coach directing the roster. Let’s look back on that 2025 squad, and rank the top 10 Bills players from the 2025 season.
Ranking the top 10 Buffalo Bills from the 2025 season
10. EDGE, Joey Bosa
The 10 spot was open to several other names, including FB Reggie Gilliam and safeties Jordan Poyer and Cole Bishop. Ultimately, Joey Bosa gets the edge (pun partially intended) because he was simply more impactful over the life of the 2025 campaign.
Bosa finished second on the team in sacks with five, but his low sack total doesn’t paint the full picture of the bounce-back season Bosa had. Of course, with his injury history, playing in 15 games was a massive win for him. However, that extra time on the field allowed him to register the most pressures and QB hits he’s had since 2021.
It’s not lost on Bills fans that Bosa wasn’t particularly productive in the postseason. It’s also not lost on them that Bosa didn’t send Buffalo’s pass rush over the edge as Von Miller did years ago. Still, he brought value to the team, and his presence was a net positive for the 2025 season. Nonetheless, Bosa likely won’t be back with the Bills next season.
9. C, Connor McGovern
Bills Mafia seems split on Connor McGovern, though some of that is just trying to figure out how Brandon Beane will crunch the numbers to be able to make any moves this offseason. Still, replacing a center, no less one as good as McGovern, is no easy task.
McGovern somewhat sits in this spot for the rest of the offensive line who are not included here. The unit took a step back in pass protection, yes, but on the ground, there wasn’t a more dominant force than the Bills’ front five. Buffalo didn’t just have the league-leader in rushing yards, the team led the league in rushing yards, and that comes back to McGovern.
Keep in mind, the biggest rushing performance from Buffalo came with both tackles out of the lineup. McGovern manned the middle, handling the communication and assignments up front to open the lanes for James Cook and company to put up 249 yards on the Steelers to set an Acrisure Stadium opponent record.
8. LB, Matt Milano
It’s never a question on if Matt Milano should be on a list such as this one, but where. Milano played in just 12 games this season, but that was thankfully more than the Bills saw out of him in the past two seasons combined.
Milano racked up 67 tackles, seven for a loss, 3.5 sacks and forced a fumble in 2025. It wasn’t his best season statistically, of course, but Milano certainly still carried the torch in the middle of Buffalo’s defense.
Between his leadership value and consistency on the field, Milano has long been a fan-favorite in Buffalo. Set to be a free agent this spring, if it was his last season in a Bills uniform, it was nice to see him back in action and once again playing at a high level.
7. DL, Deone Walker
The Bills got some exciting moments out of their rookies in 2025, but none was more impactful on a week-to-week basis than Deone Walker. The fourth-round pick out of Kentucky played in all 17 games, but just 47% of defensive snaps, leaving him plenty of room to grow in the coming years.
Walker put together a strong rookie campaign, totalling 39 tackles, seven for a loss, a sack, a fumble recovery, and four pass deflections on the season. That was enough to earn him a spot on ESPN’s 2025 All-Rookie Team.
The exciting part for Walker’s future is that he didn’t really get to work alongside Ed Oliver much. But now that he’s healthy and Walker turned in such a fantastic rookie season, whoever takes over the defense will have two capable pieces in the middle of the defensive front to build around.
6. LB, Shaq Thompson
Shaq Thompson turned in a whale of a season for the Bills in 2025, turning back the clock to the days when he worked with Sean McDermott back in Carolina.
Thompson gave Buffalo’s defense a spark, both with his vocal leadership and his play on the field. In 12 games, he picked up 56 tackles, six for a loss and a sack.
Like Milano, Thompson is set to be a free agent, and considering his ties to McDermott, it wouldn’t be surprising for him to leave the Bills behind. But also like Milano, Thompson purged any misconceptions about his ability to stay healthy and contribute to a strong defense, which should open some doors for him this offseason.
5. KR/PR/RB, Ray Davis
Maybe it’s a bit too high for a return specialist, but Ray Davis didn’t earn an All-Pro nod for nothing. The second-year player out of Kentucky was an elite kick returner for the Bills, averaging 30.4 yards per return to lead the league. His lone touchdown return also tied the league lead.
In all-purpose yards, Davis picked up over 1,300 yards, boosted by his dominant performance on the ground in the season finale against the New York Jets, when he had 151 yards on 21 carries.
The Bills don’t need Davis to do too much out of the backfield because of James Cook, but Davis will head into next season, likely with a new coaching staff to impress, and a shot to contribute more offensively. Whether he begins to be featured in the offense isn’t the end-all be-all for him, though. As long as he continues to prove he’s capable of being one of the best return specialists in the league, he’ll continue to be a key player on the roster.
4. OT, Spencer Brown
Again, the entire offensive line deserves its flowers for its overall performance in 2025, but right tackle Spencer Brown deserves a little extra.
While the Bills’ offensive front allowed Josh Allen to be sacked more times than ever before in his career in 2025, Brown only allowed three of those 41 sacks. According to Pro Football Focus, Brown allowed a total of 36 pressures this season, four QB hits, and drew just four accepted penalties, too.
Of course, Brown has long established that he’s one of the best run-blocking tackles in the NFL. PFF gave him an 84.6 run-blocking grade in 2025, ranking 7th among all NFL tackles.
3. CB, Christian Benford
You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more impactful player on the Bills’ defense than Christian Benford. Just like his first three years in Buffalo, it wasn’t all perfect, but the fourth-year corner made a strong impression late in the season.
Benford scored two defensive touchdowns late in the season that were catalysts in sparking comebacks against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals in back-to-back weeks.
On top of that, Benford turned in his best season in coverage yet, allowing just 54.4% of passes in his coverage area to be completed, the best mark in his career, for just 362 yards and four scores.
Benford is the top cornerback on the roster, and it looks like he’s just getting started in becoming one of the premier corners in the league.
2. RB, James Cook
James Cook led the NFL in rushing, thanks to a fantastic offensive line and Joe Brady’s persistence in sticking with what worked most reliably down the stretch for the Bills’ offense. Still, Cook didn’t lead the league in rushing simply because of what others could do for him. He was a one-man playmaker as often as he needed to be, too.
Cook finished fourth in the NFL in yards after first contact and also broke 21 tackles, a mark bested by just eight other backs. His 79 first downs were by far the most on the team (Allen’s passing first-downs don’t count in this regard), and his 14 touchdowns were only matched by Allen.
With three 1,000-yard seasons behind him, Cook has proven he’s a steady ball-carrier, but 2025 also showed that he’s ready to be a difference-maker for the Bills’ offense on every drive. There will certainly be higher expectations for him in 2026.
1. QB, Josh Allen
There’s not a lot to say about Josh Allen in this spot, but you scrolled all the way down here knowing he’d be here, so here it goes.
First of all, Allen arguably put up better stats than his MVP campaign from 2024, especially with consideration to what his receiving options were and the fact that he was sacked much more often than in seasons past.
Secondly, there’s no doubt that without Allen, the Bills don’t get anywhere near the AFC Championship in 2025. The roster around him is stronger than many of Brandon Beane’s detractors will credit it for being, but Allen played a huge part in covering up its flaws, whether it was keeping pace on the scoreboard if the defense had a bad day or by carrying the offense if the ground game was ineffective.
Lastly, and most importantly, Allen is the lifeblood of this team and organization, and 2025 was as obvious a representation of that as can be.