Bills' defense will miss early-season unsung hero after veteran 'popped a calf'

The Buffalo Bills lost their most-senior defensive lineman to an injury suffered during Monday Night Football pregame warm-ups. He's 'week to week.'

Sep 18, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) looks to pass against Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Daquan Jones (92) in the third quarter at Highmark Stadium. | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

His name was one of the first mentioned by the experts as a potential offseason salary cap casualty.

After the Buffalo Bills drafted defensive tackles in Rounds 2 and 4, the speculation increased with some proclaiming that the days were numbered for veteran DaQuan Jones. As it turns out, however, Bills' brass was following a different line of thinking, and it paid dividends over the season's first five weeks.

"Probably our most proven or consistent defensive lineman to this point in the season," said Bills' head coach Sean McDermott after Jones was forced to miss the Week 6 loss due to an injury suffered in pregame warmups.

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One of only four defensive tackles on Buffalo's 53-man roster, Jones, who showed plenty of juice running with the first team throughout training camp, effectively handled a heavy workload from the start. The versatile interior lineman logged 64 percent of defensive snaps through five games.

Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Daquan Jones sacks New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler during first half action of the Bills home game against the New Orleans Saints in Orchard Park on Sept. 28, 2025. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While working out prior to the October 13 primetime matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, however, Jones "popped a calf" and has been subsequently labeled as "week to week."

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Jones's presence became especially important after fellow starter Ed Oliver sprained his ankle in practice and proceeded to miss four games in a row. With Oliver returning in Week 6, Jones went down before the two could play a snap together again.

Set to turn 34 years old in December, Jones will be a free agent at the end of the season. The 2014 fourth-round draft pick, out of Penn State, has eight tackles and 2.0 sacks thus far in what is his 12th NFL season.

Althouigh the bye week should help his recovery, Jones seems likely to miss at least one game due to the injury, and the Bills' defense, which is already down second-round rookie DT TJ Sanders, is certainly going to miss him.

Bills tackle DaQuan Jones pushes past the block of Ed Oliver during position drills at St. John Fisher University Tuesday, July 29, 2025 in Pittsford, NY. | Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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