As mentioned in my previous article on the Bills, which was my 2026 Pre-Draft Offensive preview of them, the Bills’ offense will be at worst one of the best in the NFL, and very well could be the best offense in the sport next season. Along with the youth on their coaching staff, the Bills’ potential lackluster defense could be their undoing this upcoming season, with the two items going hand in hand as well. As Joe Brady being a rookie offensive minded head coach combined with the Bills having a rookie defensive coordinator, are two items that do not typically correlate with strong defensive play. The Bills have what it takes to be a solid defense next season, but in today’s NFL with the level of play being so high, they will likely need to be more than that to win it all next season. The Bills could also very well be a below average defensive team which would not bode well for their title hopes. Here I will go into detail examining the Bills on the defensive side of the ball as the 2026 season approaches.
The Bills are coming fresh off firing former defensive minded head coach Sean McDermott and their defensive coordinator under him for two seasons as well. Now coordinating the defense is Jim Leonhard who will be in his first season as an NFL defensive coordinator. Leonhard was an assistant on the Broncos’ staff for the past two seasons with Denver having one of the premier defenses in the sport in that timespan. It remains to be seen how effective he will be as a defensive coordinator in the NFL, but regardless I feel as if he will certainly have his growing pains as a rookie in the role. Furthermore, I have my concerns about how well the Bills will be coached on the defensive side of the ball due to head coach Joe Brady being a rookie head coach with an offensive background. As we saw how much the Cowboys struggled this past season on the defensive side of things while having a rookie offensive minded head coach, and that was with Dallas having a proven veteran defensive coordinator. Whereas the Bills have a rookie defensive coordinator to pair with having a rookie offensive minded head coach, which is a recipe for disaster from a defensive coaching standpoint. The Bills’ defensive personnel is also nothing to write home about as not a single player from their defense was selected to a pro bowl this past season. Below I will go into detail assessing Buffalo’s personnel on the defensive side of things as the draft approaches.
From a front seven standpoint the Bills have many concerns that they may need to address with the remainder of the offseason cycle heading into next season. Only two of their current seven listed front seven starters are surefire NFL starters in my estimation. Ed Oliver and Gregory Rousseau are two players that I evaluated to be in the B+ to A- range as overall players based on their career statistics and subjective grades assigned to them by Pro Football Focus. Those two players will be the anchors of an otherwise questionable Buffalo front seven. The Bills have acquired veteran Bradley Chubb who is in line to start on the defensive front this season for Buffalo. But Chubb is coming off a career worst season where he ranked well below average at his position and will play next season at the age of 30 years old with an injury history. So, one would be hard pressed to argue that Chubb is a surefire starting caliber NFL player.
Outside of the veterans in Oliver, Rousseau, and Chubb who are in line to start up front, the Bills’ front seven is comprised of young unproven players who will need to step up their game. 2025 second rounder T.J Sanders is in line to start on the defensive front but had a poor rookie season ranking among the lowest graded defensive lineman in the NFL in limited snaps and he will really need to improve. In line to start at nose tackle is 2025 4th rounder Deone Walker who had a decent rookie season. Walker seems to be far from an impact level player but could very well mold into a solid starter for the Bills heading into next season onwards. Alongside Chubb in the linebacker unit, former third round picks in Dorian Williams and Terrel Bernard are in to start. Both of those players, despite being drafted relatively high, I both evaluated to be in the C range, and neither feel like starting caliber NFL players as of now. Buffalo will likely need to address their linebacker unit heading into the season, but they very well could promote one highly capable backup linebacker to a starting role.
Speaking of Buffalo’s reserve defensive players, the Bills have some noteworthy depth on their defensive front. Players who could eventually step into the starting lineup and at worst provide Buffalo with strong depth up front. Edge rusher Phidarian Mathis was a 2nd round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft but has unfortunately really underwhelmed in the league thus far. In all three seasons where Mathis has logged more than a handful of snaps in, he has graded as amongst the worst players at his position. However, Mathis has never had a shot to log near to a full season’s worth of snaps and perhaps with more playing time he can show he was indeed worthy of being drafted as high as he was. 2024 third round pick DeWayne Carter on the defensive line also had a poor rookie season but did not play at all in 2025. Perhaps Carter can now come into his own as he is set to log extended snaps outside of his rookie season as such a high draft pick. The aforementioned linebacker I was referring to who could step into the starting line up is 2024 undrafted free agent Joe Andreessen. Andreessen in limited snaps in his first two NFL seasons consistently graded in the above average range among players at his position and could certainly prove to be a capable starter. The last remaining noteworthy reserve in Buffalo’s front seven is Landon Jackson who was a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Jackson in 30 rookie snaps looked decent and could mold into a strong player given his high draft selection and solid rookie season.
From a front seven standpoint the Bills are in very questionable shape as of now but if young players step up their game and/or if the Bills’ front office can make further additions before the season starts, they could field a solid front seven headed into 2026. The likes of veterans Deone Walker, Gregory Rousseau, and to a lesser extent Bradley Chubb form a very formidable front seven trio. But as stated previously, the remainder of the front seven unit is very concerning outside of those three, with the veteran Chubb also being a concern as well. The Bills will need the likes of young players, most of which were former high draft picks, to really step up their game to support the likes of the aforementioned three players in the Bills’ front seven. Young players such as 2025 second rounder T.J Sanders, 2025 fourth rounder Deone Walker, 2023 third rounder Dorian Williams, 2022 third rounder Terrel Bernard, 2022 second rounder Phidarian Mathis, 2024 third rounder DeWayne Carter, 2024 undrafted free agent Joe Andreesen, and 2025 third rounder Landon Jackson. As currently constructed the Bills’ front seven is below average if not one of the weakest in the NFL. However, if the Bills’ front office can add to the unit in the remainder of the offseason cycle and if the some of the aforementioned young players can step up their game, the Bills could field a solid if not better than that front seven next season.
From a secondary standpoint, the Bills also have some talent but still far too many question marks for me to feel comfortable to say that their defense can be Super Bowl caliber. Starting cornerback Christian Benford is perhaps the bright spot of the entire defense and is amongst the best overall corners in the NFL. 2024 second round pick safety Cole Bishop is also a bright spot in the Buffalo secondary as Bishop ranked among the better overall safeties in the sport during his second season in the NFL after struggling as a rookie. However, outside of those two players, the remainder of the secondary from a starting standpoint and a reserve standpoint is very concerning.
In line to start at the other safety spot is veteran Geno Stone who is talented but struggles with consistency. I graded Stone to be in the C+ to B- range as an overall player, a borderline starter who is likely better suited as a high-end backup given his inconsistencies on the field. At the other cornerback spot 2025 6th round pick Dorian Strong is set to start, Strong had a decent rookie season in very limited snaps, and it remains to be seen how good of a player he will be. At the nickelback spot the highly capable but highly inconsistent C.J Gardner Johnson is set to start, and it remains to be seen how much production Buffalo will get from him. Outside of Benford and Bishop, the Bills have big question marks all over their starting secondary. The Bills may need potential players who are currently listed as reserves to step into the starting lineup as a result.
In Buffalo’s reserve secondary unit, they have a few players of note who could step into the Bills’ starting lineup. The first of which is 2025 first rounder Maxwell Hairston who graded in the above average range in limited rookie snaps. Given his very high draft selection and his strong rookie season, he certainly could break out next season in the Bills’ secondary. The other noteworthy player is safety Jordan Hancock who was a 5th round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Hancock had a strong rookie season grading in the top 30% of all qualified safeties in limited snaps. If Hancock’s rookie season is a sign of things to come, he could very well mold into a solid starter in the Bills’ secondary. Outside of those two players, however, the Bills do not have anyone of note in their reserve secondary unit.
In totality, the Bills’ defense as of now is highly questionable with a rookie offensive minded head coach and a rookie defensive coordinator to go along with a below average defensive roster, at least currently speaking. Buffalo currently has 4-5 high level starters on their defense but the remaining starters for the Bills defensively are very questionable. Buffalo has several young players in both the front seven and secondary, most of whom were once high draft picks, who will need to step up their game to aid the Bills’ defense. In addition to it the Bills’ front office will need to potentially add more players in the remainder of the offseason cycle to help Buffalo on defense. As things are currently slated, I believe the Bills have a below average defense and young players will need to step up their game and/or the Bills may need to add more players on defense for that to change. New offensive minded head coach Joe Brady will need to show an understanding of the defensive side of the ball as a young coach without a background in it. While the Bills’ new rookie defensive coordinator will need to prove to be a strong hire and overcome the growing pains he will likely see as a rookie in the role.
