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Bills Could Have ‘Difference Maker’ in 6-foot-4, 263-Pound Rookie
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- Bills Could Have ‘Difference Maker’ in 6-foot-4, 263-Pound Rookie
Clemson edge rusher T.J. Parker. Getty
The best way for the Buffalo Bills to support Josh Allen is to draft good players — something they've shown little skill for in recent years.
The hope, now, is that moving forward, draft classes will deliver the goods. That might start with their 1st pick of the 2026 NFL draft, edge rusher T.J. Parker, delivering from the moment he steps on the field.
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PFF's Gordon McGuinness singled out Parker as 1 of a pair of rookies, along with wide receiver Skyler Bell, who might be able to step in from Day 1 and move the needle for the Bills as they try to win their 1st Super Bowl in franchise history.
Since Allen became the starter in 2018, the Bills have had 1 player with double-digit sacks — Leonard Floyd with 10.5 sacks in 2023. That's hardly the kind of support the NFL's best player needs.
"T.J. Parker earned PFF grades above 80.0 in each of his final two seasons at Clemson and has the length to become a difference-maker at the next level with the right coaching," McGuiness wrote on July 31. "He generated 41 pressures on 325 pass-rushing snaps in 2025, with 17 resulting in either a sack or quarterback hit."
T.J. Parker Put Up Big Numbers at Clemson
Parker was a stats machine at Clemson from the moment he stepped on campus, earning Freshman All-American honors in 2023 followed by consecutive All-ACC selections in 2024 and 2025.
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In just 3 seasons, Parker finished with 126 tackles, 41.5 TFL, and 21.5 sacks.
"Parker had 41.5 career tackles for loss, the second most in FBS since 2023," ESPN's Alaina Getzenberg wrote in April. "He also is the only FBS player since 2024 with at least five forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries. Those are the kind of impact plays the Bills will be looking for from Parker in the years to come."
Bills Spent Big Money on Edge Rusher in Free Agency
The Bills were serious enough about fixing their edge rusher woes that they also added another high-priced player at the position in free agency, signing Bradley Chubb to a 3-year, $43.5 million contract.
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"Dolphins edge Bradley Chubb and the Bills agreed on a 3-year, $43.5M deal with $29M guaranteed," NFL Network's Ian Rapoport wrote on his official X account on March 9.
Chubb was designated a post-June 1 release and signed with the Bills within the first hour of the new NFL league year opening.
According to Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport , it's a mistake they could end up paying for in the long run, calling Chubb's injury issues flaring up again the "worst case scenario" for the Bills on defense in 2026.
"The Bills had injury issues a year ago defensively, especially in the front-seven," Davenport wrote. "If those continue, trouble could be brewing, especially if Chubb (who missed the entire 2024 season with an ACL tear) joins them. Add to that potential issues in the slot after the departure of Taron Johnson , and the nightmare scenario is a defense that is largely unchanged in 2026 backsliding against the pass while once again struggling against the run."
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The 2023 torn ACL was actually the 2nd ACL tear of Chubb's career. He also suffered a partial ACL tear in 2019 with the Denver Broncos that cost him all but 4 games that season. In 2021, Chubb only played 7 games for the Broncos after ankle surgery.
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