Buffalo Bills DE Greg Rousseau Talks 'Playing Hurt' Amid Injury: 'Slowly But Surely'

Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau hasn't been the same since a foot injury early in the season. He spoke about his progress and playing through the ailment before Week 10's matchup with the Denver Broncos.

The Buffalo Bills fell to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9, 24-18. A large part of how flat Buffalo looked can be attributed to a pass rush that had arguably its worst outing of the season. The defense managed just one sack of quarterback Joe Burrow, and it is overly apparent that the Bills won’t beat good quarterbacks with that recipe.

It seems Buffalo’s misfortunes on the injury front continued to mitigate the defense’s potency. Future Hall-of-Fame edge rusher Von Miller is clearly not at 100 percent and has made minimal impact on his way back from an ACL tear. Despite a strong start to the season, edge rusher Greg Rousseau has found himself in a trough of production.

He hasn’t had a sack since Week 4. In turn, Buffalo has generated just eight sacks in its last four games, compared to 21 in the five prior. Playing the Washington Commanders and quarterback Sam Howell certainly helps, but even omitting that game leaves the Bills averaging one fewer sack per contest. That’s a substantial difference—three sacks per game would rank inside the top 10, while two sacks per game is one of the five-worst marks in football.

Rousseau’s foot injury has been detrimental to the defense, but the pass rusher spoke about playing through it on Thursday.

Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) gestures during the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Highmark Stadium / © Gregory Fisher, USA TODAY

“It takes some getting used to, playing hurt, but it’s part of the game,” Rousseau said. “Blessed to be in the position that I’m in. I’m just trying to help the team win.”

Helping the Bills win takes on more importance now that they stand just 5-4 with a tough road ahead. The Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, and Los Angeles Chargers all boast either an elite quarterback or serious playoff aspirations. Divisional matchups with the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins won’t be easy, either.

One source of optimism can be Rousseau’s luck. Whether his injury has rendered him slightly less explosive or variance has not sided in his favor, Rousseau is generating more pressures (26) than his sack total (three) would indicate. Some positive regression could pull the Bills into a more favorable position.

Rousseau seemed optimistic about his health heading into the home stretch.

“Obviously, since I’ve been working my way back I haven’t been as productive, but I’m getting back to where I was at the beginning of the year, slowly but surely,” Rousseau said. “I’m excited for this next half of the season and I’m excited to go out there and make an impact to help us win even more games and get to the playoffs.”

Fortunately for Rousseau, he’ll have an extra day to recover. The Bills will host the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football to wrap up Week 10’s festivities.