NFL writer praises Bills’ front office and stout RT amid solid start to 2024 season

ESPN's Ben Solak praised not only Buffalo Bills right tackle Spencer Brown for his solid start to the 2024 season, but the team itself for developing him.

Kyle Silagyi | 4 Hours Ago

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There were times at which the Buffalo faithful had almost collectively written Spencer Brown off.

There was an initial buzz after the Bills selected the trait-sy 6-foot-8 tackle out of Northern Iowa in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, with fans pointing to his perfect relative athletic score as indication of his future prowess. He showed initial promise as a rookie, providing juice for a lifeless Buffalo offensive line after becoming the starting right tackle in Week 4 of the 2021 season; he struggled to close out the campaign, allowing 36 pressures throughout the year, per PFF.

He started 14 games the next season, largely struggling as he allowed 50 total pressures, four sacks, and five quarterback hits while taking seven penalties. Right tackle was widely viewed as an area of concern on the Bills’ offensive line entering the 2023 campaign, but Brown silenced doubters throughout the year, playing on all but three offensive snaps as he decreased his number of pressures and hits allowed. Buffalo rewarded his third-year breakout in the 2024 offseason, inking him to a four-year, $72 million deal before the start of the campaign.

And Brown has generally rewarded the front office’s faith throughout the start of the 2024 season, standing out as an area of strength on an offensive line that has been one of the league’s best. It’s been quite a transformation for the 26-year-old; just a year-and-a-half ago viewed as a failed project, he’s now one of the highest-paid players at his position in football, and most would agree that he’s well worth the investment.

Buffalo Bills, Spencer Brown, Josh Allen

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ESPN’s Ben Solak recently gave both Brown and Buffalo’s front office their flowers in an article for the outlet, crediting not only the player for developing into a formidable starter, but the team’s brass for sticking with Brown and developing him as opposed to showing him the exit door after early adversity.

“A lot of teams take the toolsy, small-school tackle in the middle rounds; few teams actually develop the guy. Kudos to the Bills, who rode some early ups-and-downs from their 2021 third-round draft selection and are now reaping the fruit of their patience,” Solak wrote. “Brown has learned how to play light and balanced despite his enormous 6-foot-8 frame, and he hadn't given up a pressure all season until he ran into weirdly elite edge rusher Kyle Van Noy on Sunday night.”

Brown’s Week 4 outing against the Baltimore Ravens was undoubtedly his worst of the 2024 campaign, but that can be said of Buffalo’s entire offensive line, as quarterback Josh Allen was running for his life throughout the entire contest. He and his teammates will look to improve in Week 5 as the Bills take on a potentially dangerous Texans defensive front in Houston.

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