Here we go again with Part 4 of our annual review, answering the questions of what do the Bills need to do to get to the top of the mountain in the NFL. With trades, free agency and the draft all being considerations, GM Brandon Beane’s priority has to be shoring up the defensive side of the ball. With that in mind, we’ve highlighted only one position on offense that may need an upgrade.

Here are our suggestions:

Edge Rusher/Defensive End

The Bills need an upgrade here for certain to improve the pass rush. They have a promising rookie in Javon Solomon but haven’t gotten consistent enough performances from the likes of Von Miller, A.J. Epenesa and Greg Rousseau. Plenty of pundits are suggesting the best route for GM Beane to take to add a difference maker to the unit is through a blockbuster trade. There are numerous candidates, the best of which is Myles Garrett of the Browns, who has requested to be dealt. The Raiders’ Maxx Crosby was a possibility but new Las Vegas coach Pete Carroll seems reluctant to trade away his core pieces. Trey Hendrickson of Cincinnati is an interesting possibility. The Bengals’ GM, already facing having to pay star receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins big dollars to go along with Joe Burrow’s contract, has stated “we can’t have huge contracts at every position” so where does that leave Hendrickson? The Bengals are also notoriously cheap when it comes to paying players. The free agent market is packed with big names who range from aging stars like Khalil Mack, Matthew Judon, Haasan Reddick and Calais Campbell to younger options such as Josh Sweat, Chase Young, Charles Omenihu and Zach Baun. The Bills pick at 30 in the draft’s first round. Possible choices at edge rusher there are Nick Scourton of Texas A&M, Jack Sawyer of Ohio State, Nick Green from Marshall and Boston College’s Donovan Ezeiruwaku. In later rounds, there’s Landon Jackson from Kentucky, Ashton Gillette of Louisville and LSU’s Saivion Jones.

Wide Receiver

This may be the only position on offense that the Bills need to address. Amari Cooper and Mack Hollins are both entering free agency, and the need for an outside threat is still present. There is word, maybe or maybe not substantiated, that Josh Allen would like to team up with Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, currently with Kansas City but a pending free agent. There are a lot of other names on the free agent market, but no others that fit the Bills’ need. That means the draft is the best option for an upgrade. With 3 picks in the first 2 rounds, the best receivers look to be already off the board in the first round, leaving intriguing prospects like Texas’ Isaiah Bond and Tre Harris of Ole Miss in round 2. Later round possibilities are Jayden Higgins of Iowa State, TCU’s Jack Bech and a possible real diamond in the rough – Oregon’s Tez Johnson.

Defensive Tackle

Three of the Bills’ veteran DTs are free agents, and Daquan Jones is a possible salary cap casualty, so there is a massive need for additions on the interior defensive line. The team should be salivating at the possibility of signing Philadelphia’s Milton Williams in free agency. He’s only 26, was a standout in the Super Bowl and shouldn’t command huge money. Defensive tackle is also the deepest position of players available in the draft, so that is the most likely place where the Bills will add, with at least 2, maybe 3 players drafted. Derrick Harmon from Oregon is almost certain to be there at pick 30, and later round choices could be Kentucky’s Deone Walker, T.J. Sanders from South Carolina, Texas’ Alfred Collins, and Toledo’s Darius Alexander. There are quality D tackles spread out throughout this year’s draft.

Safety

I can’t see any other possibility than the Bills focusing almost entirely on defense this offseason, and the safety position is in need of a quality starter and some depth. With former Jaguars’ DC Ryan Nielsen joining the staff, a free agent possibility is Andre Cisco. He’s only 25 and is a 4 year starter for the Jags. He could be plugged immediately into the starting lineup. Miami’s Jevon Holland is another player worth a look. He’s relatively young and has stood out in games against Buffalo. If the draft is the place to find answers, Nick Emmanwori of South Carolina is a first round possibility, and Notre Dame’s Xavier Watts could be had in the second round. For depth purposes, a couple of later round guys are Sebastian Castro from Iowa and Penn State’s Kevin Winston.

Cornerback

Cornerback is almost as big of a need for additions as defensive tackle and safety going into the offseason. The free agent market isn’t eye-popping. The best option might be to bring back Rasul Douglas and draft a couple of rookies to develop behind him. There are 3 top candidates who consistently drop to Buffalo in mock drafts – Texas’ Jahdae Barron, Shavon Revel Jr. of East Carolina and Azareye’h Thomas of Florida State. Later round depth possibilities – Maxwell Hairston of Kentucky, Ohio State’s Denzel Burke, Jacob Parrish of Kansas State and late rounder Justin Walley of Minnesota.

Part 3 of our annual Buffalo Bills’ season review deals with the defense and special teams. Despite head coach Sean McDermott’s specialty being on this side of the ball, the defense has been mostly responsible for the team’s playoff failures over the years. In his first year as coordinator, Bobby Babich can take pride in the fact that his unit was a machine in causing turnovers, but needs improvement in stopping the run, pass rush ability and percentage of third down conversions against. Toward that end, the Bills have made a few additions to the defensive coaching staff to help Babich. They also replaced the special teams coordinator with a much more experienced coach.

Here is a position-by-position look at the defense and special teams:

Defensive Line

Overall, and especially in the conference title game, this unit underachieved. They were gouged against the run too many times and produced too few sacks on passing downs. After a stellar 2023 season, tackle Ed Oliver regressed, and his fellow starting tackle, Daquan Jones, began to show signs of his age. At the backup tackle spots, rookie DeWayne Carter, like most of the draft class, was slowed by injuries and never developed as he should have. Austin Johnson was a free agent signee who made some plays in limited snaps as the team used a rotation system. Quinton Jefferson and Jordan Phillips were in-season stopgap signings that likely won’t return as they were on one year contracts. The production of the edge rushers/ends was also limited by the rotational usage. Von Miller has not produced the expected results since he was signed, and his snap counts being as low as they have been may signal his end. Like Oliver, Greg Rousseau was decent but inconsistent, and the same can be said for A.J. Epenesa, although he produced more splash plays in less playing time. Veteran Dawuane Smoot had a decent season, and he has the added versatility of being able to play inside and out on the line. It sounds like a broken record, but rookie Javon Solomon, just like the other draftees, showed tremendous potential at times but needs experience to grow into what he can possibly become. The D line could use an infusion of size and power on the interior next season, and a star pass rusher would help also.

Linebackers

The duo of Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard should be a force for opponents to reckon with. The problem is Milano has trouble staying on the field, as he has dealt with multiple injuries the last couple of years. Bernard has grown into the leader of the defense, and was named a team captain last season. He is one of the few playmakers on the unit. Dorian Williams is a capable starting linebacker, as he proved while filling in for Milano last year. The rest of the reserves are a mix of a special teams guy, Baylon Spector, and 2 young, inexperienced rookies, Joe Andreessen and Edefuan Ulofoshio.

Defensive Backs

After being the most solid unit on the team in 2023, alarm bells need to go off for help for the secondary next season. Buffalo routinely plays a 5 man nickel defense as their base unit, and as of now only 2 of those spots, border corner with Christian Benford and slot corner with Taron Johnson, can boast competent players. The concussion Benford suffered in the championship game looked severe enough to even worry about his future as a player. At the other CB spot, Rasul Douglas was a great trade acquisition in 2023, but his play slipped noticeably this past season. Both starting safeties, Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin, are adequate at best. Rapp is also prone to injury. Among the reserves, Ja’Marcus Ingram is a more than capable backup, while Kaiir Elam is now officially a first round bust who won’t be back. Cam Lewis is a player whose value is important to the team, both as a backup to all the secondary positions and as a special teams player. It’s conceivable, maybe even expected, that rookie Cole Bishop will play his way into a starting safety spot in 2025. He ended the year there as a replacement for Rapp, who was injured. The secondary is a prime spot for both new starters and added depth for next season.

Special Teams

After 2 seasons of the special teams not only not being special but being a hindrance, the Bills parted ways with ST coach Matt Smiley. His replacement, Chris Tabor, is a much more experienced and respected coordinator. It will be interesting to see what he bring out of these units. Those units include a solid long snapper in Reid Ferguson, a potential game-changing return man in rookie Brandon Codrington, an aging punter, Sam Martin, and an inconsistent placekicker in Tyler Bass. There are useful bomb squad contributors like Reggie Gilliam, Cam Lewis, Mack Hollins (if he re-signs), Baylon Spector and Quinton Morris. Competition for Martin is already on the roster, as Jake Camarda inked a futures contract right after the season.

The offense will be looked at in part 2 of our annual Bills’ season review. This unit was the strength of the team in 2024 as they scored more points than any other club, ran the ball effectively and limited turnovers all year. Here’s a position-by-position look at the offense:

Quarterbacks

The Bills can now claim the NFL’s Most Valuable Player as their starting quarterback. Josh Allen is the cornerstone of the franchise and with him at the helm the Bills should be championship contenders every year. The backup signal callers were all clipboard carriers this season. Mitchell Trubisky served that role all season, with practice squad QB Mike White also getting a shot in the team’s final meaningless game at New England.

Running Backs

Buffalo boasted a pretty efficient stable of running backs in 2024, with all contributing in their own unique way. The top back is James Cook, who is an overlooked Pro Bowl caliber back. A 1,000 yard season and 20 touchdowns sealed his place as the team’s #1 runner. Veteran Ty Johnson made significant contributions spelling Cook all year, as did rookie Ray Davis, a hard running power back who is more of a north/south runner than Cook. Fullback Reggie Gilliam made his usual contributions as a blocker and special teamer.

Receivers

The receiving corps’ individual numbers reflected the team’s “everybody eats” mantra this season. There was no one individual who stood out above the others. The most effective was slot receiver Khalil Shakir, Allen’s most dependable weapon. Rookie Keon Coleman showed flashes, but he needs to step up his game, and production, in 2025. Injuries did slow his development. Curtis Samuel was maybe the top offseason free agent signing, but he contributed little to the offense until late in the season. Again, injuries helped lead to his inconsistency also. Trade deadline acquisition Amari Cooper made a few splash plays but mostly was invisible in the offense. He will be a free agent so his return in 2025 isn’t certain. Another free agent signee who will again be on the open market is Mack Hollins. The colorful veteran became a fan favorite, a favored locker room guy and a trusted target for Allen. Adding in his special teams contributions, Hollins should be priority to sign in free agency. One of OC Joe Brady’s offseason projects should be how to get the club’s talented tight ends more involved in the offense, especially Dalton Kincaid.  Dawson Knox is a reliable target also, while third tight end Quinton Morris gets little playing time but makes plays when he does.

Offensive Line

Coached by Aaron Kromer, the Bills’ O line is starting to be recognized around the league as one of the best. For the second straight season the unit stayed together and healthy. A couple of tweaks were made to the lineup as Connor McGovern moved from guard to center, with David Edwards moving into the lineup at McGovern’s old spot. O’Cyrus Torrence enjoyed another solid year at the other guard position, while the 2 tackles, Pro Bowler Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown, held down their positions. Josh Allen took the least amount of sacks in the league, and the rushing attack was among the NFL’s best. Among the backups are Alec Anderson, now the club’s designated sixth lineman on running plays, veteran Ryan Vandemark and rookie Tylan Grable, a player to keep an eye on in the future. Another rookie, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, can play both center and guard. The versatile Anderson can also play any position along the line, so the depth there is in a good place. Oft-injured Tommy Doyle is expected to retire, and another rookie, international prospect Travis Clayton, is a long shot to make it in the league.

The 2024 NFL season is now history, and it’s time for our annual review of the local franchise, the Buffalo Bills. This, part 1 of our 4 part series, deals with the ups and downs of the front office and coaching staff. To recap, Buffalo had an outstanding regular season, dominating the AFC East division and clinching a playoff spot early. The year included victories over the top seeds in both conferences, the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions, and a 5-1 record against division opponents, with the lone defeat coming in a meaningless week 17 contest against New England, played by backups. Unfortunately the season once again ended in massive disappointment, however, as the Bills were defeated by the Chiefs in the conference championship game. That is now 4 times that Kansas City has ended the Bills’ Super Bowl dream in the last 5 years. In looking at the team’s management, it may be time to begin questioning the effectiveness of GM Brandon Beane in building a team capable of getting over that K.C. hump. His swapping of draft picks that enabled the Chiefs to draft fleet wide receiver Xavier Worthy definitely hurt. Passing up Ladd McConkey in favor of Keon Coleman doesn’t look good at this point either. His 2023 draft class as a whole was similar. The players showed flashes at times of being decent additions to the squad, but other than maybe running back Ray Davis, none were consistent, either to being too inexperienced or having their development hampered by injuries.

As for coaching, the promotion of Joe Brady to full time offensive coordinator turned out great. Buffalo was among the lead leaders in points scored, least sacks taken and least interceptions thrown, while displaying a solid rushing attack. The offensive line, under the tutelage of Aaron Kromer, was one of the league’s best. Defense was another story. That side of the ball is supposed to be head coach Sean McDermott’s specialty, and that unit, under new DC Bobby Babich, underwhelmed. They were the main reason, once again, for the final playoff failure, allowing the Chiefs to score more points than they had all season in the title game. The pass rush didn’t really produce sacks all year. The one aspect the defense did well – causing turnovers – masked a lot of deficiencies. To begin this offseason, the team has made a few moves to help shore up those deficiencies, hiring veteran defensive backs coach Mike Pellegrino and former Jaguars’ DC Ryan Nielsen as a senior defensive assistant to help Babich. His specialty is scheming simulated pressures on passing downs. The special teams haven’t been very special for years now in Buffalo, and a move was made there as well. Matthew Smiley was fired as special teams coordinator after a couple of seasons’ worth of gaffes that cost the club games, replacing him with Chris Tabor, former Panthers’ special teams coordinator who was voted second best ST coach by the NFL Players’ Association in 2023. With lots of holes to fill, and 10 draft picks and a lot more salary cap space to work with in free agency, this is a vital offseason for Beane and his staff.