Their offseason actions suggest that Buffalo Bills' brass would almost certainly disagree with the latest NFL defensive triplets rankings from Sports Illustrated.
The Bills clearly believe they have assembled core players at every level of the defense, agreeing to long-term contract extensions with defensive end Greg Rousseau, linebacker Terrel Bernard and cornerback Christian Benford.
Although Rousseau, Bernard and Benford have all been effective, key components of head coach Sean McDermott's defensive scheme, the trio has combined for a total of zero All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections since being drafted by the Bills.
While identifying and ranking defensive triplets for all 32 NFL teams, SI placed Buffalo's aforementioned triumvirate at No. 14 overall. With one pass rusher, one inside linebacker and one defensive back forming each team’s defensive trio, the Bills landed one spot behind the No. 13 Detroit Lions (Aidan Hutchinson, Jack Campbell, Brian Branch).
"This trio might get overlooked when it comes to accolades, but the Bills know what they have. All three earned contract extensions this offseason for their stellar play, helping Buffalo win five consecutive AFC East titles." — Gilberto Manzano
The Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles (Jalen Carter, Zack Baun, Quinyon Mitchell) topped to chart at No. 1 followed by the AFC North champion Baltimore Ravens (Nnamdi Madubuike, Roquan Smith, Kyle Hamilton) in the No. 2 slot.
The New York Jets, who have been unable to translate their individual defensive talents into wins, lead the AFC East with Quinnen Williams, Jamien Sherwood, Sauce Gardner comprising the No. 8 ranked set of triplets.
While the on-field results need to improve, especially in the playoffs, the Bills have an arguably underrated core that they seem to believe can get the job done.
“When you talk about the players that are returning, it's just identifying from last year the areas that we need to improve to be more consistent as I just talked about. Making sure that we own those, we know those and we work on those. That's the training part of where we're at right now, and also, going into training camp," said defensive coordinator Bobby Babich last week in Orchard Park.
