Trusted NFL analyst has secret sauce for Bills' defense in Wild-Card game vs. Jaguars

Dan Orlovsky showed what has made the Bills' defense so dangerous this season.

Sep 23, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) runs for a first down against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Dan Orlovsky has become one of Buffalo Bills fans’ favorite analysts over his time appearing on Western New York sports talk radio.

He has found a niche in his ability to make in-depth analysis digestible for the casual fan, as was exemplified during a recent appearance on ESPN’s NFL Live, when Orlovsky explained what could be the difference for the Bills’ defense against their Wild-Card opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars, this weekend.

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Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott looks on before the game against the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Smart shift

“The evolution of the Bills’ defense is going to be huge in this game,” said the NFL analyst. “Number one, it’s different than it was years ago. Much more zone or fire-zone centric, blitz centric. And then two, the adjustments they make throughout the game will be huge. They are a very different second-half defense than first-half defense.”

He went on to explain how the Bills’ increased use of a three-linebacker scheme has been an ingenious transition from what has been the norm the past several years, when the Bills primarily deployed nickel defense featuring two linebackers.

“You get athletic rushers on these quarterbacks, athletic people staring at the running quarterback,” said Orlovsky in a video clip posted to X.

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This will matter Sunday with Bills and Jags#nfllive pic.twitter.com/n7vEE9arzk

— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) January 9, 2026

He added, “Three linebackers up into the line of scrimmage, only three defensive linemen — this is freaking Star Wars. Edge pressures from depth, everybody from the line of scrimmage drops out, and then there’s that zone pressure. 

“That’s one of the things that’s really become like a trademark of this defense, is these zone blitzes. But they’re not these copy-and-paste, cookie-cutter, one from here, one from there. When they put three linebackers on the field, just pay attention to it.”

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Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator, Bobby Babich yells to the team during warm ups trying to get them pumped up before their 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

Big matchup

There’s plenty that the Jaguars will have to account for on Sunday, including the reigning MVP Josh Allen and the NFL’s leading rusher James Cook on the offensive side of the ball. But Jacksonville’s red-hot offense will also have to solve Buffalo’s surging defense, which finished the regular season No. 1 in the league in passing yards allowed per game (156.9). 

Kickoff between the Bills and Jaguars is set for 1 p.m. in Jacksonville.

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