Buffalo Rumblings
The Buffalo Bills have built and retooled their defensive line multiple times throughout general manager Brandon Beane’s tenure with the club. And while that group hasn’t always been as effective as we’d like them to be, we aren’t that far away from a time where Eddie Yarbrough was a key factor in the defensive end rotation.
Sure, fans (myself included) can be picky, especially when we follow a team that has been oh-so-close to winning big games over the last few years only to repeatedly come up short. We want players to perform like it’s Madden, dominating each game in robotic fashion. That’s not always the case, though, and sometimes, players will have big weeks while disappearing in other games.
For the Bills, the hope this year is the same as it ever was: That the team’s impact players make big plays in the biggest games, leading them to glory in a Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. In our latest edition of “90 players in 90 days,” we discuss a defensive end who has shown the ability to take over games from time to time.
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Name: Greg Rousseau
Number: 50
Position: DE
Height/Weight: 6’6”, 266 pounds
Age: 25 (26 on 4/5/2026)
Experience/Draft: 5; selected by Buffalo in the first round (No. 30 overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft
College: Miami (FL)
Acquired: First-round draft choice
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Rousseau is playing on the final year of his rookie deal, but after signing a four-year, $80 million contract extension, general manager Brandon Beane was able to spread the cap hit out over the course of the contract. This year, his cap hit is just $5,885,505. It doubles next year before ballooning to over $23 million in 2027. If the Bills were to release him, they would incur a dead-cap charge of more than $38 million.
2024 Recap: Rousseau had another steady season last year, and in fact, it was really the best season of his career. He set high-water marks in tackles (53), tackles for loss (16), and quarterback hits (24) while tying his career-high in sacks with eight. He also had three pass knockdowns, three force fumbles, and one fumble recovery.
He played in the Bills’ first 16 games before he was designated a healthy scratch in the regular-season finale. While the Bills are known for rotating their defensive linemen rather heavily, Rousseau played over 100 defensive snaps more than the next-closest edge player, appearing on two-thirds of the team’s defensive snaps.
Rousseau was a force in the playoffs, as well, notching ten tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, and two quarterback hits in three games.
Positional outlook: Rousseau is a starter along the defensive line, and Joey Bosa is the man starting across from him. A.J. Epenesa and Javon Solomon rotated in during Buffalo’s wild Week 1 victory over the Baltimore Ravens, with Landon Jackson on the roster but a healthy scratch for the game.
2025 Offseason: Rousseau is healthy and ready...
