Next man up .
It’s a phrase that coaches at all levels of football will recite until they’re blue in the face, but it’s rung particularly true for the Buffalo Bills this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The team was dealt a major blow in late August when former All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano suffered a bicep tear, an ailment that will keep him sidelined until December, at the earliest. The blows kept coming once the 2024 campaign commenced, with elite nickel cornerback Taron Johnson going down with a forearm injury in Week 1 before starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard suffered a pectoral strain in Week 2 .
Buffalo has been forced to push depth defenders—individuals who hadn’t played on more than a handful of regular season snaps entering the new campaign—into prominent roles, with Dorian Williams, Baylon Spector, Cam Lewis, and Ja’Marcus Ingram all logging significant snaps through three games this year in lieu of the injured starters. This isn’t even to mention the turnover prompted by offseason departures, as Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin are now manning the backend of the Bills’ defense after seven-year starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer departed Orchard Park in the spring…