Buffalo Bills' Highest And Lowest Graded Players in Week 1

Who stood out as the top five and bottom five graded players for the Buffalo Bills during their Week 1 win?

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir runs the ball during the second quarter against the Houston Texans. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills exercised some demons this weekend as they handed the Houston Texans a 36-31 defeat. The win inside Reliant Stadium was the first time the Bills secured a win in Houston since 2006 and just the second time Allen has defeated the Texans.

As is always the case, the star quarterback couldn't do it alone. This one was a full team effort which included multiple strip sacks on defense as well as some fourth-quarter heroics from wide receiver Joshua Palmer.

There were also some mistakes as well, which is expected during such a shootout. With the dust settled, let's take a look back at the action and see which players earned the highest graded from PFF as well as those who earned the lowest grades in Week 1.

Buffalo Bills' Top 5 graded players in Week 1

Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid reacts after making a catch against the Houston Texans. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

To absolutely no one's surprise, Dalton Kincaid led the way in this one with an overall grade of 91.5. Kincaid was electric, recording 5 receptions on six targets for 130 yards. His average of 26 yards per reception helped the offense open things up, making life easier on Allen.

Defensively, Greg Rousseau was their top player and finished second with a grade of 84.5. Rousseau moved to outside linebacker in Jim Leonhard's defense and proved to be an excellent fit, recording two strip-sacks, including one to shut the door on Houston's comeback attempt.

Wideouts DJ Moore and Khalil Shakir were third and fourth, which is encouraging given the team's need for more from the receiver position in 2026. Dorian Williams rounds out the top five with a 74.0.

1. Dalton Kincaid, TE - 91.5
2. Greg Rousseau, OLB - 84.5
3. DJ Moore, WR - 79.0
4. Khalil Shakir, WR - 74.3
5. Dorian Williams, LB - 74.0

Buffalo Bills' Bottom 5 graded players in Week 1

Buffalo Bills cornerbacks Davison Igbinosun and Christian Benford celebrate during the game against the Houston Texans. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As for the bottom five, Buffalo's defense dominated this unflattering ranking. Rookie linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr was seen as a threat to Dorian Williams entering the game, but had a grade of just 30.2. Second-year player Landon Jackson followed with a 33.1 and veteran cornerback Christian Benford was third with a 38.7. Damar Hamlin and Davison Igbinosun were fourth and fifth, but they at least secured more than a 40.

This was an especially frustrating game for Benford, who gave up 73 yards on seven receptions and was on the wrong end of two touchdowns according to PFF. Igbinosun played in far fewer snaps, but gave up 30 yards on two receptions while being targeted just twice.

1. Kaleb Elarms-Orr, LB - 30.2
2. Landon Jackson, DE - 33.1
3. Christian Benford, CB - 38.7
4. Damar Hamlin, S - 41.1
5. Davison Igbinosun, CB - 41.2

It's also worth mentioning that guard O'Cyrus Torrence (45.4), running back James Cook (50.2), and guard Alec Anderson (52.4) were the lowest-graded on offense. The struggles on the interior impacted Cook and this is an area that needs to be improved before Buffalo takes the field on Thursday night against the Detroit Lions.

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