Buffalo Bills: Will Late Bargain Hunting Pay Off?
The Buffalo Bills and their defense are looking to rebound from a very disappointing showing in 2015. Do they have the right pieces in place?
It seems every story about the Buffalo Bills starts with a reminder that the franchise hasn’t reached the playoffs since 1999 – the longest current drought in the league.
Related Story: Buffalo Bills: Top Prospects 3 Biggest Needs
There’s no sense rehashing the obvious. Rather, the discussion here is what the team is trying do to change that. In 2014, the club was coming off its first winning season in 10 years and was armed with one of the better defensive units in the NFL.
But under new head coach Rex Ryan, we didn’t see any semblance of that group this past season. A club that gave up the fourth-fewest total yards in the league and one that led the NFL with 54 sacks fell to 19th in total defense. Greg A. Bedard of SI.com recently had some thoughts on the surprising falloff in one year.
This offseason, defensive end Mario Williams was released following a year in which he totaled only five sacks. So was cornerback Leodis McKelvin, who wound up latching on with the Philadelphia Eagles and their new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, who held the same job in Buffalo in 2014. Inside linebacker Nigel Bradham and cornerback Ron Brooks also left for the City of Brotherly Love.
But better later than never. Over the past few days, general manager Doug Whaley has added a few pieces to a defense that was a big-time disappointment this past season. The Bills signed cornerbacks Corey White and Sterling Moore away from the Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, respectively.
White also spent time with the Dallas Cowboys this past season and began his career with the New Orleans Saints. A total of 51 games in four seasons have netted four interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries. Moore, a former undrafted free agent, has also played with three teams (Patriots, Cowboys and Buccaneers) and has also picked off four passes while recovering three fumbles.
Modest resumes indeed. And a big reason they remained on the open market until recently. Until recently, the only significant offseason pick was the signing of former Minnesota Vikings safety Robert Blanton.
But the real bargain may have been grabbing play-making defender Zach Brown, who signed a one-year with the club deal according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). He spent his days with the Tennessee Titans at both outside and inside linebacker. This past season, he rebounded from an injury-shortened 2014 (1 game) to finish with 77 tackles, a pair of interceptions and three passes defensed.
In four seasons in Nashville, the 2012 second-round pick from North Carolina totaled 10 sacks, six interceptions, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and 13 passes defensed as Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside. In Buffalo, he could help in any number of ways considering his versatility.
What will be of most interest is if the pickups of Blanton, Brown, White and Moore will not only supplement the likes of defensive tackles Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams and defensive end Jerry Hughes but be better fits in what Ryan wants to do.
More nfl spin zone: Pittsburgh Steelers: 5 Questions That Are Worth Asking
When you’re the only NFL team not to make the playoffs this century, patience isn’t a luxury your organization can’t afford. If the Bills can recapture that defensive intensity from ’14, the team will be a forced to reckon with. But there seems to be a lot more work to do in Orchard Park.