The Buffalo Bills are facing plenty of questions at offensive line after losing Brandon Shell to an unexpected retirement and Tommy Doyle to a season-ending injury within the span of a few days this week.
But one insider also suggests that the line’s most consistent player — and one of the team’s longest-tenured players — could also face uncertainty going into the 2023 season. The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia wrote that left tackle Dion Dawkins will be under increased scrutiny after an up-and-down season in 2022 and may need to prove himself to justify his salary going forward.
Bills Need ‘Bounce-Back’ Year From Dion Dawkins
As Buscaglia noted, Dawkins was among a number of offensive linemen who struggled in the team’s August 19 preseason loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. While Dawkins may be nowhere close to losing his job, the performance could lead to the pressure he will face in the upcoming season, Buscaglia added.
“Dawkins is the clear-as-day top offensive tackle on the team, though some flaws in his pass protection against the Steelers are nowhere close to the positive tune-up the Bills would have liked to see from their top left tackle,” Buscaglia wrote. “He even had a false start penalty mixed in, and the inefficient evening likely played a role into his playing for an additional drive after quarterback Josh Allen subbed out of the game.”
Dion Dawkins called Saturday’s loss to the Steelers a “Reality check.” Sean McDermott said it’s his responsibility to fix the problems and he’s headed back to drawing board. Here’s more from Pittsburgh.
Buscaglia suggested that Dawkins may need to bounce back in order to prove he’s worth the big cap hit the Bills have coming in the next season.
“Dawkins is a sneaky storyline this year, as his play dropped off slightly in 2022, and he’s now in his age-29 season,” he wrote. “With a $15.3 million cap hit in 2024, Dawkins needs a bounce-back year.”
Bills Taking Hits at Offensive Line
The Bills had a difficult week for the offensive line, losing Shell and Doyle within a few days. Josh Allen said he felt terrible for Doyle, who has now suffered season-ending injuries in two consecutive years.
“The dude’s a warrior. I feel for him. I think everybody on our team feels for him, just seeing how hard he worked to get back,” Allen said, via SI.com. “I’m not sure what it is and the severity of it, but we’re thinking about him, we’re praying for him. We love him. I think you can see how many guys went out there and gave him a little tap or just an ‘I love you man.’ You hate to see it. It’s a part of the game, but you hate to see it, especially when it’s your own teammates and a guy who has worked so hard to get back on the field.”
The Bills made a move to add depth this week, signing offensive tackle Garrett McGhin for what will be his third stint with the team.
McGhin first signed with the Bills in August 2019, but was released before the start of the season. He spent parts of the next two seasons with the Carolina Panthers, appearing in two games in the 2019 season, before returning to Buffalo for a brief stint in the summer of 2020.
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Bills OL With Looming $15.3M Cap Hit Under Pressure This Year: Insider