The Buffalo Bills gave a big boost to their pass rush when they signed Pro Bowler Joey Bosa earlier this offseason, and later this week could make another significant addition.
Just days before the NFL draft starts on April 24, the Bills have been spending time with some of the top-rated pass rushers, including one who could be a Day 2 target. Reporter Justin Siejak of 4 News Buffalo reported that the team met with UCLA edge rusher Femi Oladejo, a tough player who could be a versatile addition to Buffalo’s defense.
“Oladejo is a freaky strong pass-rushing prospect with the potential to be a disruptor. However, he is raw,” Siejak wrote in a post on X. “He’s new to EDGE as he’s a former off-ball LB.”
Femi Oladejo Got Boost With Position Change
NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein wrote that Oladejo improved his draft stock after changing from linebacker to edge rusher, though he could still have some work to improve his instincts in the run game.
“Linebacker-turned-edge-rusher whose draft profile might have gone from dull to dynamic with the switch,” Zierlein wrote in the site’s pre-draft analysis on the UCLA edge rusher. “Oladejo is long and aggressive in attacking blockers in front of him.”
Though the Bills have been in win-now mode as they won the AFC East for the last five straight seasons and may not have as much patience for developmental projects, Zierlein suggested Oladejo could become an NFL contributor sooner than some might expect.
“He greets and discards blockers with powerful, twitchy hands and still plays with a linebacker’s range and nose for the football despite his new position,” Zierlein wrote. “He catches the ‘developmental’ tag relative to his edge experience, but his traits and tape suggest he will make a difference sooner than expected.”
Bills Made Big Changes to Edge Rushing Group
The Bills have spent the offseason overhauling their edge rushing group, parting ways with veteran pass rusher Von Miller in a cap-saving move.
The team also added Bosa, whose All-Pro abilities have been dulled in recent years by a string of injuries. Bills head coach Sean McDermott said he started working with the team’s strength and conditioning staff and director of performance immediately after Bosa was signed, working on a plan to keep him at peak condition.
“We’ve had success before in taking guys, maybe, who had an injury history, perhaps, and have helped them,” McDermott said, via SI.com.
McDermott also added that a change of scenery could help Bosa get back to his previous form.
“[Bosa’s] been in one place for give or take nine years, and sometimes [a change] can bode well for, kind of… re-stoking the competitive fire and the juices,” said McDermott.
The Bills could have other additions in mind for their defensive line. Kyle Crabbs of The 33rd Team predicted the Bills would use their first-round draft pick on Oregon defensive tackle Derrick Harmon.
“Buffalo’s primary objective this offseason has been clear — the Bills want to get better defensively up front,” Crabbs wrote. “They signed Larry Ogunjobi, Joey Bosa and Michael Hoecht in free agency and now get a chance to add a disruptive wrecking ball to go along with Ed Oliver long-term inside.”
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