The defense for the Buffalo Bills is going to look a lot more different under Jim Leonhard, going from a 4-2-5 to a 3-4. There are pros and cons for the switch, but at the end of the day, it was time for a change.
For what seems like forever now, the defense for the Bills has been the main why reason why Buffalo has been eliminated from the playoffs. When the offense is scoring close to 30 points a game and yet they are still losing, it was time for the defense to make a change.
Sean McDermott was fired, Joe Brady was promoted, and now Leonhard is running the defense. One major change that became official was Greg Rousseau being moved from edge rusher to outside linebacker, per Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic. With this move being implemented, this could open up the door for a reunion with a free agent that has been with the Bills since 2020.
Greg Rousseau roster move could help Bills bring back A.J. Epenesa
Epenesa was set to join the Browns on a one-year deal that was worth up to $5 million, per Adam Schefter. However, just a few days later, Daniel Oyefusi from ESPN who covers the Browns, reported that Cleveland would not be signing Epenesa after "not feeling comfortable finalizing the deal after his physical."
Epenesa remains a free agent and now that Rousseau is moving to outside linebacker, the Bills may want to strongly consider bringing back Epenesa for a third go-around in his career. Epenesa knows Buffalo and he was a solid pass rusher who was consistently bringing pressure.
From 2022-2024, Epenesa was averaging six sacks as a rotational player, and he even had himself a couple of nice hits against the run.
The fact that the Browns were only going to pay Epenesa a deal that was only worth up to $5 million, I don’t see why the Bills wouldn’t bring him back on a cheap contract to bring in veteran depth who knows what it’s like to play for the Bills.
The Bills have a need at edge rusher. While they should look to draft one or two in next week’s NFL Draft, bringing back Epenesa would give them a quality veteran who has had success in Buffalo. Now, it just depends on whether or not Leonhard thinks that Epenesa would be a great fit for his scheme. That could be the difference maker.
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