Greg Rousseau has turned out to be a complete slug.

[BullBuchanan]

On 11/21/2025 at 4:01 PM, Buffalo716 said:

I mean sure he's not absolutely horrible 

 

He's probably between 20 and 32 for an inside linebacker in the NFL 

 

Probably a 5 to 6 million a year player we gave him double because he had one good year... And we were pressing because we let our pro bowl middle linebacker walk who was actually top 10

 

He makes some plays... Not consistently anymore and he's always hurt and slower

The 19 year old that they hate in Chicago for the same reasons people hated him here?

[seannc]

I have to say this is one of the more interesting debates I've seen on TSW lately. Good points on both sides. 

[Mikey152]

I don't know...

 

Of the 8 sacks the Texans got, only one or two featured reps where the DE absolutely whipped the OT and made a play. Most of them came after getting stonewalled initially, but the ball didn't come out and the OT disengaged to avoid a holding penalty.  

 

Meanwhile, the ball seems to come out on time against the Bills quite a bit, and if it doesn't the offense seems to anticipate that and has the back or TE chip/protect. There's also rarely pressure up the middle after the injuries to Oliver and Hoecht.

 

Makes it pretty impossible to get sacks if the ball is coming out quick and the pocket is clean.

 

 

[SC STATE NUPE]

And the crazy thing is if you put Groot on the Texans, I think he’ll look like an All-Pro!!! Some teams just know how to get the best out of players. 

[FireChans]

7 hours ago, Simon said:

So despite the fact that he's beating people up on the regular, Greg Rousseau is a problem because 2 years from now the Bills might want to restructure his contract?

Good grief man, talk about borrowing trouble.....

 Not so much that they may need to restructure, but that paying Rousseau has to have SOME opportunity cost when it comes to building the rest of the roster.

 

you can think despite of all that, he’s earning his keep. That’s fair I think. I just think at a certain point, paying B+ players makes team building harder.

[Generic_Bills_Fan]

3 hours ago, seannc said:

I have to say this is one of the more interesting debates I've seen on TSW lately. Good points on both sides. 

The much maligned PFF has him as the highest rated bills player and a top 10 DE in the league to add some fuel to the fire 😂. Obviously a grain of salt type thing but I have never seen this big of a PFF/fan disconnect in my life haha it’s really interesting 

[BADOLBILZ]

5 hours ago, BullBuchanan said:

The 19 year old that they hate in Chicago for the same reasons people hated him here?

 

 https://www.audacy.com/podcast/take-the-north-a-chicago-bears-podcast-f67e3/episodes/tremaine-edmunds-has-thrived-since-moving-to-outside-linebacker-2fcf9

 

Who'd have EVER thought that moving Edmunds to OLB would elevate his game?

 

[Dafan]

On 11/24/2025 at 9:02 PM, Shortchaz said:

He’s not a problem, he’s just making the most money on an underperforming defense. We have at least 5 of these types of players. Guys making B+ or better money and not showing up on the stat sheet. 
 

this isn’t one man’s problem (player wise) which means it’s someone else’s (coaching or management) 

This D-line with Oliver and Hoecht would make it a world of difference.  Is Groot a superstar on his own, no.  Is he good with a  supporting cast...yes.

[Roundybout]

 

 

 

Interesting stat. Our defense just isn’t design for a lot of sacks. It’s been that way for years. 

[JP51]

Rousseau is simply not worth what we paid him... IMO there needs to be hard cap choices going forward including potentially eating dead cap space... He is average as a starter maybe and probably a great rotational guy on a team with major players... simply he is not good enough to anchor the edge position...  we need to look to upgrade at every position on Defense... except maybe Bishop who has a high ceiling and that goes for Benford as well... I am wondering if he isnt best served in a Taron Johnson role if we can upgrade CB1 or Hairston becomes a bona fide CB1....  just how I see it. 

[Simon]

9 minutes ago, JP51 said:

Rousseau is simply not worth what we paid him... IMO there needs to be hard cap choices going forward including potentially eating dead cap space... He is average as a starter maybe and probably a great rotational guy on a team with major players... simply he is not good enough to anchor the edge position...  we need to look to upgrade at every position on Defense

 

Cutting the best DE you've had in 15 years because you think your simply going to go and magically find a better player at the position when you're drafting 25th every season is nothing more than a delusional fantasy, imo.

[JP51]

10 minutes ago, Simon said:

 

Cutting the best DE you've had in 15 years because you think your simply going to go and magically find a better player at the position when you're drafting 25th every season is nothing more than a delusional fantasy, imo.

I never said that they should cut him... I said they over paid for his production and its not just Rousseau by the way (he is clearly the target of this thread) it goes way beyond him.... I would actually say he may be the least of our Defensive issues... , we need to look at upgrading every position on Defense save maybe Bishop and Hairston potentially..... but to me there are no areas that I would say I am comfortable with on this defense... But there is no way you are cutting Rousseau, now if you can get a guy that totally out plays him and takes time away.. etc... great... 

Edited 3 hours ago by JP51

[tigerthelion]

I have been on the "Rousseau" is grossly overpaid train for a bit.    I am not so sure anymore.  He is getting paid well, but he isn't getting paid like a Parsons or Garrett or Crosby. I am starting to come around to the idea that the team just needs to figure out a way to shore up the middle of the defensive line.  That doesn't just mean waiting for Oliver to get back.  It means having some stability in the middle, some actual run stuffing, and not just undersized penetrators (who don't seem to be all that great at that, anyway).   Having paid a bit closer attention to Rousseau, I think he would thrive if he didn't have to cover for the complete lack of run stuffers on the team.  Deone has had some great moments and some moments of getting blown off the ball, so he has some potential.  If he can provide a more consistent game stopping the run, with some pass rush up the gut, that would help.  Joey Bosa, to me, has been so out of control that I can't tell if he is a net positive or negative.  At times, he provides a nice pass rush, and at times he is a complete liability.  Almost rather see him out on third downs only at this point.  I realize that he has played hurt recently, but he is kind of a wild guy at all times.  Sometimes it works, but it definitely hinders the team quite a bit.  

[JoshAllin]

5 hours ago, Roundybout said:

Interesting stat. Our defense just isn’t design for a lot of sacks. It’s been that way for years. 

Then can we please have him do a little bit of this too?

[Sojourner]

2 hours ago, Simon said:

 

Cutting the best DE you've had in 15 years because you think your simply going to go and magically find a better player at the position when you're drafting 25th every season is nothing more than a delusional fantasy, imo.

I might be wrong but I’m not putting him above Jerry Hughes. Certainly not Mario Williams. Other than them, yes. He is the better we’ve had since them. 

In fact, I’d actually put him on par with the Lorax for edge players. 

[Billsflyer12]

5 hours ago, Roundybout said:

 

 

 

Interesting stat. Our defense just isn’t design for a lot of sacks. It’s been that way for years. 

Any idea why local Bills media feel obligated to act as Bills PR?

 

Anytime fans or outside media has any bit of criticism or concern, one of the local media write, post or say something as if it was handed to them by Bills PR to spread.

[WideNine]

On 11/22/2025 at 10:06 PM, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

Boat race?   The offense only scored 12 points!😂

 

And they turned the ball over twice in their own territory, effectively gifting the Houston offense 6 points.

 

And yet Allen still had the ball with a chance to win the game at the end.    Just like the last 2 KC playoff losses.  

 

 

 

 

If I had seen your post earlier, I would not have echoed it - yep, the offense was not lighting it up last week.

Quite the lack of complimentary football to go around with our Bills this year. Injuries, schematic mismatches, poor execution, middling talent in areas where we need exceptional talent for the roles, and defenses having our number for the things that had been working well for us.

Not sure what they can do about the defense other than pray that some of the rookie talent can stay healthy and grow into their respective roles - the rest is filled out by a few aging vets and guys that should be on the practice squad not starting every game.

The offense I expect will be better this week. For one thing I expect and hope that the OL comes out fired up and playing to the whistle - they were taken to the woodshed by the Texans and some of that was just effort and some of that was the Texans DEs were just better. The effort part is fixable.

If Kincaid is back, then things magically start to work again as he creates conflict and mismatches for the ways teams want to play us and that opens up other things on the field for Allen. Having Kincaid and Palmer both healthy and playing at the same time is a luxury we have not seen a lot of this year considering they are probably the best receiving options on the roster that can create route separation.

When those guys start producing things open up for Cook - so here's hoping that boat race idea comes to fruition this week.





 

Edited 47 minutes ago by WideNine

[BADOLBILZ]

47 minutes ago, Billsflyer12 said:

Any idea why local Bills media feel obligated to act as Bills PR?

 

Anytime fans or outside media has any bit of criticism or concern, one of the local media write, post or say something as if it was handed to them by Bills PR to spread.

 

 

Blaming Rousseau for the defensive struggles is just such a particularly bad take that it's easy for media to point out.

[GoBills808]

12 minutes ago, WideNine said:

If I had seen your post earlier, I would not have echoed it - yep, the offense was not lighting it up last week.

Quite the lack of complimentary football to go around with our Bills this year. Injuries, schematic mismatches, poor execution, middling talent in areas where we need exceptional talent for the roles, and defenses having our number for the things that had been working well for us.

Not sure what they can do about the defense other than pray that some of the rookie talent can stay healthy and grow into their respective roles - the rest is filled out by a few aging vets and guys that should be on the practice squad not starting every game.

The offense I expect will be better this week. For one thing I expect and hope that the OL comes out fired up and playing to the whistle - they were taken to the woodshed by the Texans and some of that was just effort and some of that was the Texans DEs were just better. The effort part is fixable.

If Kincaid is back, then things magically start to work again as he creates conflict and mismatches for the ways teams want to play us and that opens up other things on the field for Allen. Having Kincaid and Palmer both healthy and playing at the same time is a luxury we have not seen a lot of this year considering they are probably the best receiving options on the roster that can create route separation.

When those guys start producing things open up for Cook - so here's hoping that boat race idea comes to fruition this week.





 

😂😂Only on the Bills would having your upper midtier TE and WR3 type healthy at the same time be considered a luxury