The anatomy of the Buffalo Bills' epic comeback might start dissecting Josh Allen's play, but it includes a host of other big-time supporting actors. None larger than Ed Oliver.
The defensive tackle terrorized the Baltimore Ravens' front in Sunday's 41-40 comeback victory. The biggest play came trailing 40-32 with 3:10 left: He stonewalled Derrick Henry and swiped the ball out of the running back's hand. Linebacker Terrel Bernard dove on the loose oblong, and the comeback was in full swing.
"Yeah, big game. Ed had a big game," coach Sean McDermott said earlier this week, via WGR Sports Radio 550. "You could feel his play out there. Whether it was the run game, the pass game, a couple good hits on the quarterback, a couple big plays in the run game behind the line of scrimmage, and then forcing the fumble. Like the entire team, he didn't quit. There was no quit in that team, in our team. And that's a good thing as we look to move forward."
The forced fumble was Oliver's signature play, but not his only one. The seventh-year pro made almost every big play for the Bills' front. Anecdotally, he was the only player who seemed to slow Henry at all. He generated a sack, six tackles, two QB pressures and five stops, tied for third-most among DTs in Week 1.
Oliver's superior play on Sunday earned him the No. 1 ranking among all interior defenders by Pro Football Focus.
"You want to continue to grow and improve and evolve, and he wants to continue to take his game to another level," McDermott said. "He's shown that he's worked and to put himself in that position. Now it's the week-in and week-out intentionality that you take into every week, and you see what he can do when he's in that space."
The Bills entered 2025 with a revamped defense, hoping to find pass rushers to complement Gregory Rousseau -- hence the signing of Joey Bosa. In Week 1, it was Oliver coming alive that was the biggest positive for McDermott's D.
An up-and-down player most of his career, the Bills will need Oliver to stack big games as they get set to face the New York Jets in Week 2. Gang Green scorched the Steelers on the ground with quarterback Justin Fields and Breece Hall making big plays, while racking up 32 points in a loss.
