Although the Bills have been perennial AFC contenders since 2019, a mediocre pass rush has been among the reasons they have not reached the Super Bowl. While sacks aren’t the end-all, be-all, it is notable that only one Bill (Leonard Floyd in 2023) hit double digits in a season during former head coach Sean McDermott‘s nine-year reign.
The Bills moved on from the defensive-minded McDermott after last season and promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady to head coach. In his most important hire, Brady tabbed longtime NFL safety and ex-Broncos assistant Jim Leonhard as his defensive coordinator. The Bills have since added a noteworthy pass rusher in Bradley Chubb, whom they picked up on a three-year, $43.5MM agreement in free agency.
Chubb, who is replacing free agent Joey Bosa in Buffalo, may not be the only significant pass-rushing investment the team makes this offseason. With the draft a few weeks away, there is a belief general manager Brandon Beane will be willing to move up from 26th overall for an “impact edge presence,” Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom writes.
“They still don’t have enough bite up front,” one longtime executive told La Canfora.
Transitioning to a 3-4 base defense in 2026, the Bills are indeed light on edge rushers. Chubb and Greg Rousseau are the best in-house options for a defense that ranked 20th in sacks and 27th in pass rush win rate last year. Michael Hoecht is next in the outside linebacker pecking order, but it is unknown how much he will contribute next season after tearing his Achilles last November. Andre Jones and Javon Solomon round out the group, though neither has done much over a combined five NFL seasons.
The good news for the Bills is that this year’s class is heavy on edge rushers. It is the deepest position group going into the draft, according to NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein, who contends “edge defenders will rule the first round.” Beane may be able to upgrade even if he stays at 26, which would be ideal for a team that’s light on draft capital.
Having already traded their second-round pick to the Bears for wide receiver D.J. Moore, the Bills own seven selections and a mere two in the top 91. They also have other needs to address (interior defensive line, middle linebacker, receiver and secondary depth among them), which Beane will have to consider before potentially trading up.
The biggest need league-wide is EDGE.
I predict a huge run on edges in the first. The edges that you think are 2nd rounders will go in the first.
Buffalo currently drafts behind EDGE-needy teams like the Bears, Chargers, Panthers, Cowboys, Buccaneers. Sounds like they don’t want to risk missing out.
I’d argue offensive line is the biggest need league-wide, but yeah, a ton of teams could use at least one more edge for their rotation. Deep draft for edge, but really depends what kind of guy you want. Keldric Falk and R Mason Thomas, for instance, are both good edge prospects, but they’re wildly different profiles.