Two Buffalo Bills rookies stand out to provide silver lining in gut wrenching loss to Houston
Sunday's game between the Buffalo Bills and the Houston Texans left Bills fans with a very bitter taste in their mouth. Josh Allen and the passing attack looked completely lost, and late game decision making on the part of the coaches all but took away an opportunity at completing an impressive comeback on the road. […]
Sunday's game between the Buffalo Bills and the Houston Texans left Bills fans with a very bitter taste in their mouth. Josh Allen and the passing attack looked completely lost, and late game decision making on the part of the coaches all but took away an opportunity at completing an impressive comeback on the road. The game was there for the taking, and they didn't take it.
Not everything is bad, though. Rookies got plenty of opportunities on both sides of the ball to show what they're made of, and two rookies in particular on the defensive side of the ball stood out.
The first was defensive tackle DeWayne Carter, who I affectionately nicknamed "Blastoise" during the summer (I'm still waiting for it to catch on). With Ed Oliver missing from the lineup, the rookie got his first career start.
There were moments that he can learn from, but largely, Carter stood out with great pursuit and athleticism. Carter was able to get three sacks, a hurry, and a QB hit in the game. It was an impressive first showing. Carter will need to continue to work on his run defense, though, as there were a couple instances where he was pushed off his spot.
Carter wasn't the only rookie along the defensive line. With Buffalo now missing Von Miller for four games due to a suspension stemming from an incident in 2023, Javon Solomon got a lot of run at defensive end.
Solomon is an undersized defensive end, but he was highly productive in college and plays with a ton of energy. In Week 3 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Solomon got a strip sack in limited reps, getting in on the party that the defense was having against Trevor Lawrence. He didn't get a sack in this one, but he showed an ability to generate pressure. With Miller on the shelf for a few more weeks, it's a great opportunity for Solomon to log a bunch of reps and speed up his development. As the season goes on, I expect his role to grow and for us to see him regularly in the mix as a rotational pass rusher.
The youth movement is good to see. When you use a valuable draft pick on these players, watching them make an impact in the NFL and improve along the way is a special story to monitor. Hopefully next week will see these rookies contribute to the Bills getting back in the win column.
Follow along all season for all the latest Buffalo Bills news. You can also find me on X @JonHelmkamp.
