The Bills have recruited DeShawn Williams to further bolster their defensive line. According to a team announcement on Thursday, the 31-year-old inked a one-year contract.
Williams played in Cincinnati during his debut season in 2016, but he did not play in a regular season again until 2020, when he joined the Broncos. Over the course of his three-year stay in Denver, the former UDFA started 34 of his 46 games as a member of the organisation. His career-high 4.5 sacks during his final Broncos campaign led to a one-year deal with the Panthers.
Playing opposite Derrick Brown in Carolina, Williams started 10 of 16 games and recorded a solid 44% snap share. The Clemson product finished with a PFF grade of 50 after recording 33 tackles and one sack. Even though he had less sacks overall, his 18 QB pressures (per PFF) represented a personal high and were comparable to his prior campaigns. In Buffalo, Williams will try to duplicate that rotating output.
There were many unanswered questions surrounding the defensive interior of the Bills going into free agency. But Buffalo swiftly signed DaQuan Jones to a two-year contract, and Austin Johnson was added. With that duo and Ed Oliver, who is signed through 2027 thanks to a generous agreement he signed during the winter, Williams will try to carve out a place.
Buffalo had just under $9 million in cap space as of Thursday; but, with the Johnson and Williams signings being official, some of that amount will be reduced. Though the team is moving to new players in several areas on that side of the ball, those two will provide the Bills with veteran depth along the D-line.
