The Buffalo Bills have a glaring issue that needs to be addressed in order to reach championship goals
It's time that we have a hard conversation about the defensive line. Particularly, the defensive tackles.To put it bluntly, what the Buffalo Bills are getting from their interior defensive line duo of DaQuan Jones and Ed Oliver simply isn't good enough, especially when you look at their contracts.Winning covers all matters of sins, but when […]
It's time that we have a hard conversation about the defensive line. Particularly, the defensive tackles.
To put it bluntly, what the Buffalo Bills are getting from their interior defensive line duo of DaQuan Jones and Ed Oliver simply isn't good enough, especially when you look at their contracts.
Winning covers all matters of sins, but when you lose a game, the weaknesses show. That's exactly what happened as the Bills took on the Los Angeles Rams, and Oliver knows it.
What we do is we analyze the job performance. It's important to take into consideration the end of Oliver's statements there — he has been nothing other than an incredible teammate and a very likable person, and I wish for nothing but success and happiness for he and his family. Hopefully that's as a contributing member of the Bills that's a force on their defense line for years to come.
But, that said, it's important to point out performance issues when they're seen. In order for the Bills to reach their championship goals this season, the defensive line simply has to play better.
Oliver and Jones have seen their production take a dramatic downturn from last season. Their combined stats this season paint an ugly picture.
When you compare this to last season, when Oliver finished the year with 34 solo tackles, 17 assisted tackles, 14 tackles for loss, and 9.5 sacks, it's a huge difference.
Stats alone are somewhat of a tricky subject for the defensive tackle position, but what's palpable is what you see on tape. Oliver and Jones, especially in the Rams game, were blown back off the line of scrimmage repeatedly, failing to maintain their position and their gap integrity to allow the linebackers to flow and make tackles. With the defensive front unable to slow down the run, the Bills had to turn to run-stopping blitzes and other formations that committed more players down into the box, putting their secondary under more stress against the lethal duo of Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua. It's a recipe for disaster.
Here's one of countless examples of the interior getting absolutely collapsed.
"I hope so," head coach Sean McDermott said after Sunday's loss when asked if they're getting what they need from Oliver. "I gotta look at it, because when you talk about the run game, you can't – It's hard to rush the passer unless you get them out of the run game, right? And so when they're under center, under center, under center, run under center, boot under center, play action. It's hard to rush the passer. That's one, but the job starts with the run game. It's not Ed, it's all of us, right? If you want to be a good run defense, it starts with an attitude, and it starts with everyone doing their job. And so it's a collective thing. It's not just that. It's all of us."
McDermott isn't wrong in saying that run defense takes all 11 guys, but if you aren't winning at the point of attack at the line of scrimmage, it's hard to be successful. His tone at the start of that quote in saying "I hope so" was ripe with frustration.
The production isn't there, whether it's stopping the run or getting after the passer, for either Oliver or Jones. Late in the season, there isn't much that can be done from a roster standpoint. The Bills have seen production from this duo in the past, and they'll need to turn it around in a hurry with a game against the Detroit Lions on deck for this weekend. But in order for Buffalo to pursue championships, they're going to need the front to play much better than they have been.
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Follow along all year for more Buffalo Bills coverage on A to Z Sports. You can find me on Bluesky @jonhelmkamp.bsky.social, and make sure to follow our main page @AtoZSports.bsky.social for all the latest news.
