Bills Central

Bills' banged-up pass rush needs breakthrough in daunting Week 14 tilt vs. Bengals

After a hot start to the season, the Buffalo pass rush has struggled in recent weeks.
Alex Brasky|
Oct 13, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) on the field against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Oct 13, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) on the field against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

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To begin the year, the Buffalo Bills’ pass rush appeared much-improved.

With Joey Bosa leading the way and Ed Oliver enjoying a heroic Week 1 performance, things looked like they were on the up and up for the Bills’ pressure unit.

Fast forward 14 weeks into the season, however, and things don’t look so good.

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Ed Oliver
Oct 26, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver (91) reacts after a sack in the first quarter at Bank of America Stadium. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Roller coaster

In a post on his X account, Locked on Bills host Joe Marino astutely pointed out that the Buffalo pass rush has not seen the same production in recent weeks that it experienced to kick off the year.

Per Fantasy Points Data, in Weeks 1 through 9, the Bills were second in the league in sack rate (9.5%), fifth in pressure rate (43.2%) and third in pass rate over expected (14.17%). But since just past the midpoint of the year, in Weeks 10 through 13, Buffalo is 31st in the NFL in sack rate (1.8%), 30th in pressure rate (26.4%) and 31st in pass rate over expected (-6.61%).

In short, what the Bills’ front-four has produced over the past four weeks simply has not been good enough. And on Sunday, going up against Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, if this group continues to perform anemically, the Buffalo defense could be in for a long day against Cincinnati.

MORE: Ed Oliver gets positive update from Bills' HC ahead of Week 14 matchup vs. Bengals

Joey Bosa
Buffalo Bills defensive end Joey Bosa watches the offensive line on the field during second half action against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov 16, 2025 at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images


Banged-up Bills

Injuries have played a significant role in this unit’s struggle to produce, as Oliver has been on Injured Reserve since Oct. 26, Bosa has dealt with a wrist injury the past several weeks and is now out for Week 14 due to a hamstring injury, while several others have dealt with extended absences as well.

With that said, one player has remained healthy throughout the year but failed to contribute his fair share of production — Greg Rousseau. The former first-round pick has recorded just three sacks in 12 games in a disappointing first season since signing a lucrative contract extension worth $20 million per season.

With Bosa out and fellow edge rusher A.J. Epenesa dealing with a foot injury that held him out of practice on Thursday, the Bills need Rousseau to guide the Bills’ pass rush to a big-time effort against Burrow and the Bengals.

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Alex Brasky
ALEX BRASKY

Alex Brasky is editor of Bills Digest and host of the Buffalo Pregame podcast. He has been on the Bills beat the past six seasons and now joins Sports Illustrated hoping to expand his coverage of Buffalo’s favorite football team.

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