Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) after the game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Robert Deutsch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Bills' biggest weakness has been on defense through three weeks

Originally posted on Buffalo Bills on SI
By Ronnie Eastham | Last updated Sep 24, 2025 2:40 PM ET

This won't come as a surprise to anyone, but the Buffalo Bills have a glaring issue on the defensive side of the ball. Through three games, the defense has given up 71 points.

One can, however, take comfort in knowing that more than half, 40, were scored by the Ravens in Week 1, but that doesn't take away from the fact that the Bills have an issue that needs to be fixed if they hope to complete their Super Bowl quest.

When we ask the question, What is the Bills' biggest weakness after the first three weeks, it's easy to say the defense, but let's get more specific. This offseason, fans were more concerned about the Bills' secondary, but EPA tells us a different story.

EPA stats capture context better than yards allowed or gained. If we go by yards, the Bills' defense ranks ninth in the league, and we know just from what we see on the field, this is not an accurate representation.

Biggest Liability Right Now

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Instead, EPA paints a different picture, especially where it pertains to the Bills' rush defense. We can see it's poor just by watching the games, but how bad is it?

The Bills rank 25th in run defense EPA, compared to 17th in pass defense.

Neither is particularly good, but if the Bills can improve the run defense to match the pass defense, the Bills will be very hard to beat, with their offense scoring 30-plus every week.

Can Bills fix run defense fast enough?

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The good news is that reinforcements are on the way. Larry Ogunjobi and Michael Hoecht return in a few weeks.

Getting Ed Oliver and Matt Milano back on the field, at some point, should help, too.

Also, let's not forget that we have two rookie defensive tackles who are just three games into their careers and are improving with each passing week.

While we shouldn't expect the Bills' run defense to suddenly become a dominant run defense, it's not out of the realm of possibility that they could become a Top 15 unit by the end of the regular season.