ORCHARD PARK, NY – DECEMBER 08: Mitch Morse #60 of the Buffalo Bills readies to snap the ball during the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at New Era Field on December 8, 2019 in Orchard Park, New York. Baltimore defeats Buffalo 24-17. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
It’s a team that’s been to the playoffs two of the past three seasons. Which five players are primed to emerge in a big ways for the Buffalo Bills?
It’s a team that won at least 10 games last season for the first time since finishing 11-5 in 1999. And the Buffalo Bills were back in the playoffs for the second time in three years. But Sean McDermott’s team also dropped three of its last four games and then squandered a 16-0 third-quarter lead at Houston in an eventual 22-19 overtime loss in the wild card playoffs.
But the franchise still hasn’t won a division title nor playoff game since 1995. That means better play from a lot pf people. And here are five performers to keep an eye on this fall, none of them who have ever earned Pro Bowl or All-Pro accolades.
5. C Mitch Morse
He was one of general manager Brandon Beane’s first moves last offseason. The Buffalo Bills needed to revamp their shaky offensive line in the worst way and signed former Kansas City Chiefs’ pivot Mitch Morse to secure the middle.
A second-round pick from the University of Missouri, he played and started 31 regular-season games his first two seasons. But that number dropped to a combined 18 contests the next two years.
This past year, Morse was a 16-game starter for the first time since 2016. He’s currently tied for 18th on the list of centers for Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and his grade for ’19 was a bit lower than the previous year when he played 11 games for the Chiefs. But look for that to improve given another year in Orchard Park and surrounded by the same cast than a year ago. And could he be in line for some honors by the end of 2020?