At Joey Bosa’s introductory press conference with the Buffalo Bills, championships were top of mind.
After signing a one-year, $12.6 million contract with Buffalo on Tuesday, Bosa told media members in attendance that he was looking for a shot at a championship. Naturally, joining the team coming off a 32-29 loss in the AFC Championship Game led by a quarterback who refused to reset the market so his team could field a championship-caliber roster felt like the perfect fit.
Bosa likened Buffalo to his days at Ohio State, getting excited about “a football town with an unbelievable fan base.” In 2014, Bosa was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and was one of 12 unanimous All-Americans the same season Ohio State secured a national championship.
“Just something different,” Bosa said, when asked about what brought him to Buffalo. “It’s been nine years (all spent with the Chargers), which I’m really thankful for my career and how it’s played out. But I’m ready to experience something different. I’m getting old and I’m ready to win. I think this team is primed to do that, and I’m just excited to join a winning culture — football culture, in a football town.”
The 29-year-old edge rusher already understands the stakes are high, something his new teammates have already established. According to Bosa, Josh Allen reached out to him to let him know what kind of legacy this team is capable of leaving behind in Highmark Stadium before the team’s planned move in 2026.
“Last year in this stadium, I think we have a chance to do something special,” Bosa said. “Josh texted me that if we do what we set out to do, we can really be immortalized in this town. That’s what it’s all about is winning — winning a championship. And that’s why I think people are here.”
Bosa’s one-year contract in part comes from a decline in play over the last few seasons. He has not played a full season’s worth of games since 2021, appearing in just 28 games over the last three seasons. While Bosa made his first Pro Bowl since 2021 last year, his 5.0 sacks and 13 quarterback hits were both career lows in his seasons with at least 10 games played.
During his press conference, Bosa chalked his recent performance dips up to battling through injuries. He missed three games early in the season with a glute injury, then went on to play at “70 percent, 60 percent” for a good portion of the season upon his return from injury.
“Last season during camp, during preseason time, I felt better than I’ve ever felt in nine years,” Bosa said. “I was playing at an extremely high level. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out the way I was hoping last year, and I’m proud of myself for the way I was able to battle back and push through some things. I’m just ready for a clean slate. Leave that stuff behind me.”
Is Bosa the missing piece in Buffalo?
The Bills hope the Bosa signing will be one of the key pieces to push them over the top in 2025. Even though Bosa said it was “silly” to think that him alone would be the thing that propelled the Bills to a Super Bowl, all of the Bills’ offseason additions to their defensive line screamed that they thought improving their pass rush was critical to their championship aspirations.
As the AFC Championship Game against the Chiefs unfolded in January, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was able to get the ball out quickly without much pressure applied to him. With the Bills depending on their four-man rush as much as they do as one of the lowest-volume blitzing teams in the league, getting improvements to their edge rusher group to help get to quarterbacks quicker will go a long way to their title hopes. Bosa will join Greg Rousseau, A.J. Epenesa and the team’s other offseason defensive end signing, Michael Hoecht, as the team’s new top four pass rushers. — Joe Buscaglia, Bills beat writer
How Bosa fits in the Bills defense
Bosa confirmed the expectation that he planned to be the starter for the Bills, which then pushes Epenesa to the bench. The Bills used Epenesa on early downs in 2024 before ultimately subbing him off on most of their obvious pass-rushing downs. His pressure rate last season (5.8 percent) was the lowest of the defensive ends on the Bills last season. The Bosa addition will push Epenesa into a rotational role, but Bosa fondly discussed the idea of playing in a rotation to keep everyone fresh for both the most important parts of games, and the most important contests.
It remains to be seen how they’ll deploy the Bosa and Rousseau combination, as both have mostly been left side defensive ends over the last several years. When healthy, though, those two will be on the field when games are on the line. — Buscaglia
Required reading
(Photo: Kirby Lee / Imagn Images)
