NFL.com put together a list of players that just baseline football fans should just sit back, relax, and root for next season. Pegging one player from each team, analyst Adam Ranks named Ed Oliver as the Buffalo Bills player fans should admire.
Oliver, a Houston product, jumped up draft boards and was eventually the No. 9 overall pick to the Bills in 2019. A Houston player isn’t usually selected that high. But Oliver’s talents were too hard to pass up.
But Oliver’s background for picking Houston is the reason why he makes NFL.com’s list:
I loved watching Ed’s college film heading into last year’s draft, but I always wondered why the former five-star recruit chose to play for Houston (no disrespect) instead of some big SEC school. Turns out, he stayed home at the behest of his father for family reasons. Which I can admire.
Along with being a feel-good story, there’s good reason to root for Oliver next year. Not only does he have a strong background, he’s primed for a breakout year.
The Bills lost Jordan Phillips via free agency. He led the Bills with 9.5 sacks a year ago. But Oliver is a reason Buffalo let him go. After getting off to a slow start as a rookie, Oliver starting to breakout in the middle of his first season. Overall, Oliver finished his first season with five sacks, 24 tackles, five for loss, a forced fumble and two passes defended.
Without Phillips in the fold, the former first-round pick is now in a spot to receive more snaps in Year 2 as well. Buffalo runs a rotation on their defensive line under head coach Sean McDermott, but make no mistake, the starters still see more snaps than those depth guys. Sometimes up to 70 percent of snaps on any given game day. That’s going to be Oliver next season.
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