Buffalo Rumblings
Will it be a “redshirt” year for the massive rookie? Or will he be able to contribute right away?
The Buffalo Bills tried to improve their defensive line once again this offseason, pouring plenty of resources into both the defensive end and defensive tackle positions. This is far from the first time that general manager Brandon Beane has sought to improve the defensive line, as he has consistently tinkered with the group in search of a combination that can dominate a game.
With respect to Beane and the Bills’ personnel department, they have consistently fallen short of that goal. While other teams — the Philadelphia Eagles, for one — have been able to create a front four capable of disrupting even the best teams and quarterbacks, the best-laid plans of the Bills and their staff have fallen short of that goal. The effort has been there, but the results have not been what Beane and company have desired.
Will this finally be the front-four combination that pushes the Bills over the hump? In today’s edition of “90 players in 90 days, we discuss a rookie coming off a rather significant injury who has tremendous potential.
Name: Deone Walker
Number: 96
Position: DT
Height/Weight: 6’7”, 331 pounds
Age: 21 (22 on 3/11/2026)
Experience/Draft: R; selected by Buffalo in the fourth round (No. 109 overall) of the 2025 NFL Draft
College: Kentucky
Acquired: Fourth-round draft pick
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Walker signed his four-year rookie contract, a pact worth $5,247,040 overall, on June 13. For the 2025 season, Walker’s cap hit is $1,101,760 and the dead-cap charge Buffalo would carry if they were to release him is $1,047,040.
2024 Recap: After a stellar 2023-2024 season where Walker totaled 55 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, and 7.5 sacks, he had a down year as a junior. Walker played in 11 games, notching 37 tackles, five tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks. It was revealed that he played his junior season with a back injury that limited him throughout the year. The specific injury is called “pars defect,” which is a fracture between two vertebrae in his spine.
Walker did not know about the injury during the season, saying that he really didn’t know what it was until the NFL Scouting Combine. His athletic testing was average to below average, showing a 25” vertical and a 104” broad jump at the Combine. At Kentucky’s pro day, he ran the forty-yard dash in 5.28 seconds and benched 225 pounds a total of 22 times. His Relative Athletic Score (RAS) was just 3.74.
Positional outlook: Walker is one of nine defensive tackles on the current 90-man roster. Fellow rookie T.J. Sanders, whom the Bills drafted in Round Two, remains unsigned. DeWayne Carter, DaQuan Jones, Ed Oliver, and Zion Logue return from last season’s club. Casey Rogers, Marcus Harris, and Larry Ogunjobi are the veteran additions to the club.
2025 Offseason: Walker has participated in offseason work in a limited fashion, saying that he’ll be ready...
