Bills fortify D-line, ink former Seahawks NT Ford

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Bills have added a key contributor to the middle of the team’s defensive line, signing nose tackle Poona Ford to a one-year deal, the team announced Tuesday.

Bills general manager Brandon Beane said that he had hoped to add a defensive tackle in the NFL draft but that the board did not go the team’s way over the three days.

“[We’re] working on some other things,” Beane said after the draft. “Maybe, we’ll see, if there’s a veteran out there. We’ve talked to a couple of people prior to the draft. And we decided to wait and see. But we’ll see this coming week. I think we’ll have a chance to add at least one veteran.”

Beane said that on Day 3 of the draft, when he realized things weren’t going to go the team’s way to draft a defensive tackle, the Bills got back in touch with agents of veteran free agent players and restarted conversations.

The team also re-signed defensive tackle Jordan Phillips to a one-year deal this offseason. The Bills still do not have a defensive tackle signed under contract past the 2023 season, including Ed Oliver, who is set to play on his fifth-year option but is a possible extension candidate.

Ford, 27, set a career high in sacks last season with three but otherwise wasn’t as impactful in the Seattle Seahawks‘ new 3-4 defense as he’d previously been in his first four seasons with the team.

He had emerged as a key player in the middle of Seattle’s defense since being signed as an undrafted free agent out of Texas in 2018 with questions about his size. Ford became a starter in 2019 in large part for his run defense and began to emerge as a pass-rushing threat as well in 2020, earning a two-year, $12.345 million contract as a restricted free agent in March of 2021.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said after the 2022 season that the team preferred playing Ford at nose tackle, but they had to play him more often than they preferred at three-technique and at defensive end, “which was pushing him to a spot that he’s not as familiar with.”

In five seasons, Ford has recorded 7.5 sacks, 182 tackles, 28 tackles for loss and 27 quarterback hits. He has made 64 career starts and hasn’t missed a game over the past three seasons.

ESPN’s Brady Henderson contributed to this report.