Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Joey Bosa warms up prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Bills' defensive line upgrades lead to power rankings boost

Originally posted on Buffalo Bills on SI
By Jeremy Brener | Last updated May 5, 2025 7:59 PM ET

The Buffalo Bills have made it their mission to get better with their defensive front seven this offseason.

That was apparent in free agency, and it has become even more clear after the NFL Draft where the team took three of its first four picks on the front seven.

ESPN liked what the Bills did in upgrading their defensive line, prompting a move up one spot from No. 4 to 3 in the website's power rankings, which was conducted by a panel of 80 voters.

"There is no area the Bills have addressed more thoroughly this offseason than the defensive line," ESPN insider Alaina Getzenberg wrote.

"They selected three players for the unit in the draft (T.J. Sanders, Landon Jackson and Deone Walker), even after adding Joey Bosa, Michael Hoecht and Larry Ogunjobi in free agency. The team also signed Greg Rousseau to a four-year contract extension. By bringing in youth and veterans, the Bills have overhauled a 2024 group that was a part of the worst passing defense and third-down defense (44% conversion rate) of Sean McDermott's eight-year tenure."

The only two teams to receive a higher ranking than the Bills were the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, who both participated in last season's Super Bowl.

In order for the Bills to get over the hump and be seen as a better team than the Eagles and Chiefs, these defensive line upgrades will have to show some kind of production on the field in the fall.

In the meantime, the new Bills additions need to get acclimated to life in western New York with the defense in hopes of ending the franchise's Super Bowl drought.