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Bills' 'Finishing Touch' on Super Bowl Hopes Hinges on 1 Player

Jul 17, 2025 7:22 AM EDT

The Buffalo Bills entered the offseason aware that to challenge for the Super Bowl, their defense would need to be upgraded.

General manager Brandon Beane went about his work and signed a host of free agents, including Joey Bosa, Larry Ogunjobi and Michael Hoecht, along with the team’s first five draft picks being used on defensive players.

Given the Bills’ Achilles heel over the past few seasons in the playoffs has been getting after the quarterback, the additions this offseason will hopefully give the pass rush enough bite to come through in critical situations.

As such, CBS Sports has named Bosa as the most important non-quarterback on Buffalo’s roster.

“The Bills have been looking for that ‘finishing touch’ pass rusher for the last several years, and Bosa is the latest attempt at finding him,” CBS Sports writes. “We know he struggles to stay healthy, but he remains damn good whenever he’s out there. Buffalo would probably be best served managing his regular-season reps to keep him healthy for the playoffs, where hopefully he can take the defense to another level.”

Bosa, a five-time Pro Bowler who turned 30 on Friday, is entering his 10th season with 72 career sacks. He recorded five sacks in 14 games with the Los Angeles Chargers last season.

The Bills struggled to get after the quarterback last season, recording 39 sacks (ranked 17th), and had a difficult time getting off the field on third down, allowing a conversion 44 percent of the time (ranked 30th).

Bosa, ideally, would help in both categories in 2025 with his ability to rush the passer, needed desperately if Buffalo is to go all the way and win the Super Bowl. Granted, it isn’t all on the former Charger, but he is the shiny new piece that has to come to Sean McDermott’s unit and produce from the outset.

Which is why his selection as the most important non-quarterback might just be the right one.