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PFF surprising rank of Buffalo Bills offensive line

Bills o-line played vital role in supporting Josh Allen's MVP award and advancing the team to the AFC championship

Khari Demos

Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Spencer Brown (79), Buffalo Bills guard O'Cyrus Torrence (64), Buffalo Bills guard Connor McGovern (66) and Buffalo Bills guard David Edwards (76).
Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Spencer Brown (79), Buffalo Bills guard O'Cyrus Torrence (64), Buffalo Bills guard Connor McGovern (66) and Buffalo Bills guard David Edwards (76). / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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The 2024 Buffalo Bills offense was historically great. A key to their outstanding offensive performance this past year was the excellent play of their offensive line.

Entering the 2024 season, the Bills' o-line was considered good, ranking as PFF's No. 8 unit overall. By the end of 2024, the Buffalo front elevated to the fifth best offensive line unit in PFF's final rankings.

The Bills were behind the lines for the Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Detroit Lions.

PFF wrote:

Bills 5th:

Buffalo's offensive line continued to have very good injury luck; Bills starting offensive linemen have missed a combined one game due to injury over the past two seasons. That came this season when right tackle Spencer Brown did not play in Week 11 against the Chiefs. The Bills capitalized on that continuity to become one of the best offensive lines in football in 2024.

The unit ranked fourth in the league in PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating (88.1), allowing 134 pressures on 581 pass plays. The Bills‘ line surrendered only four sacks, which was, by far, the fewest in the NFL. No other team allowed fewer than eight.

Best player: Dion Dawkins

Dawkins allowed pressure on 4.3% of pass plays this season — the second-best rate of his career.

PFF ranked each Bills' offensive lineman as follows:

  • RT Spencer Brown (77.9)
  • LT Dion Dawkins (72.4)
  • Sixth OL Alec Anderson (70.4)
  • C Connor McGovern (69.5)
  • LG David Edwards (66.1)
  • RG O’Cyrus Torrence (55.5)

Spencer Brown, after signing a massive contract extension, rewarded the BIlls with an outstanding year at right tackle. At the start of the 2024 season the 26-year-old signed a four-year $72 million deal with $19 million fully guaranteed, per OverTheCap. Brown got a signing bonus of $6.4 million and is the 24th highest paid tackle in the league, per sportrac.

Dion Dawkins, a four year pro bowler, also did a massive job protecting QB Joh Allen's blind side. The Bills offensive only gave up a league best 14 sacks.

The depth of this group also stands out. Anderson was the team's "swing" player and came in as the sixth lineman for Buffalo. The rookie's presence was so important that he garnered 291 offensive snaps for the Bills throughout the season.

Anderson came in and often helped lift a unit that was already one of the strongest in the NFL.

Spencer Brown, Josh Allen, and O'Cyrus Torrence
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17), Spencer Brown (79), and O'Cyrus Torrence (64) / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"The unit ranked fourth in the league in PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating (88.1), allowing 134 pressures on 581 pass plays," said Zoltán Buday in PFF's final offensive line rankings for 2024. "The Bills‘ line surrendered only four sacks, which was, by far, the fewest in the NFL. No other team allowed fewer than eight."

It's hard to ignore all that the Buffalo offense accomplished in 2024. The Bills ranked in the top 10 of most offensive categories this year. The offensive line helped Buffalo average the second-most points per game in the NFL (30.9), finished with the third-best scoring percentage in the league (49.7%), and cleared the way for a league-high 32 rushing touchdowns, led by James Cook tying for the league-high with 16.

Like Dawkins said this postseason, the big guys upfront need more love. Seeing how the Buffalo o-line played in 2024, they should be receiving more praise and accolades in the 2025 season.

Buffalo Bills offensive linemen
The Buffalo Bills offensive linemen. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

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Khari Demos
KHARI DEMOS

Khari Demos is an award-winning sports media creator and is a contributor for Bills On SI. He has written sports betting article covering the NFL for The Athletic and has written pieces about the NBA, MLB, college football and basketball, and more, throughout his career.

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