Bills' Position Battles to Watch Ahead of 2021 NFL Season

The Buffalo Bills had a clear focus in the 2021 NFL draft, when they selected a pair of pass-rushers in the first and second round.

The selections of Gregory Rousseau and Carlos Basham Jr. made defensive end one of the most intriguing positions to watch in training camp.

Buffalo has a pair of experienced edge-rushers in Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison, as well as 2020 draft pick A.J. Epenesa in the mix for snaps.

On the other side of the ball, the Bills should have competition at tight end between Dawson Knox and Jacob Hollister, who was acquired in free agency.

They won't be the top contributors in the Buffalo offense, but if they play well, they could bring another dimension to a team looking to chase the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC.

If anything, the Bills have a much deeper defensive end unit than they did in 2020.

Rousseau and Basham both come from the ACC, where they gained plenty of experience going against some of the best competition on the offensive line.

The two rookies could generate competition in training camp since Hughes and Addison combined for 9.5 sacks last season.

Epenesa only started one of the 14 games he appeared in as a rookie, so he could be in the mix to challenge the veteran pass-rushers as well.

The ideal situation for Buffalo is to have five reliable pass-rushers to go after Cam Newton, Tua Tagovailoa and Zach Wilson six times in 2021. Buffalo also has to face Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson in Weeks 4 and 5.

If the Bills have a number of players who record five sacks or more, their defense could look better than a year ago.

Tight end is the lone major weakness across the Buffalo offense.

Knox was fifth on the Bills' receiving-yard chart in 2020 behind Stefon Diggs, Cole Beasley, John Brown and Gabriel Davis.

Knox could be further down that list in 2021 if Emmanuel Sanders makes an impact on the passing attack.

Even if the numbers remain close to the same, the Bills need more scoring production in the red zone from their tight ends. Knox, Tyler Kroft and Lee Smith combined for eight touchdowns.

The addition of Hollister could put pressure on Knox to have a better camp to earn a high number of snaps.

Hollister earned 109 targets in his last two seasons with Seattle and found the end zone on three occasions in each campaign.

The Bills tight ends will not sniff what Travis Kelce does in Kansas City, but if they can build more chemistry with Josh Allen and be dangerous inside the red zone, they could put up a high number of points every week.

Buffalo has three guards on its roster capable of filling a starting role.

Cody Ford and Jon Feliciano should be penciled in as the starters, but Ike Boettger should receive a chance to begin the season on the interior.

Boettger started seven games due to injuries in 2020 and has the potential to beat out Ford and Feliciano, who was brought back in free agency.

Daryl Williams and Dion Dawkins should start at tackle and Mitch Morse is installed at center, so the only decision Sean McDermott and his staff will have to make about the offensive line is which two players win out at guard.

If Feliciano and Ford stay healthy, they could earn the nod over Boettger, but his time in front of Josh Allen in 2020 could give him a boost in confidence entering training camp.

Statistics obtained from Pro Football Reference.