### **2\. How the defensive line will gel with plenty of new faces**
As it stands ahead of training camp, Buffalo welcomed 19 new players to the defense this offseason. Ten of those new faces play on the defensive line.
It's not just the new players who will bring a different perspective to the group, but the coaches will too. That's because the defense has a new senior defensive assistant in Ryan Nielsen and the defensive line has a new assistant coach in Jason Rebrovich.
The defensive line has been tasked with building chemistry with one another and getting on the same page before Week 1. It's not an easy assignment because several new players are also rookies, but the returners are loving the new energy so far.
"All the rookies in the D-line room caught my eye," defensive end Greg Rousseau said. "Just the way they've come in eager to learn. You can tell they're just ready for the moment and ready to contribute anything they can."
Buffalo added three defensive linemen to the roster via the draft in defensive tackle T.J. Sanders (second round), defensive end Landon Jackson (third round) and defensive tackle Deone Walker (fourth round).
"We're really excited about those young guys," head coach Sean McDermott added. "And it's not just them. They're integrating into a veteran group in some ways and some of the newer players are actually veterans. So, kind of hitting it from three different angles and been fun to watch those guys work with the coaches and work on their techniques.
"As I've said before we're going to go with as the D-line goes on the defensive side, so having some young players in there and adding some new players."
One of those new veterans is defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi. The DT spent the last three seasons in Pittsburgh and believes this defense fits the way he loves to play. Ogunjobi is building chemistry by spending quality time with his new teammates.
"Getting some one-on-one time and quality time with them is very important," Ogunjobi said of his unit. "They're as advertised. Ed (Oliver) is who he is. DaQuan (Jones), AJ (Epenesa), these guys have been doing it for a long time, and they've been doing it at high level, so it's been good to get around them."
"I think the coolest thing about our room, no matter how good the guys are, how many plays they made, how much money they make, there's no egos," second-year defensive tackle DeWayne Carter said. "Everybody welcomes you, open arms and teaches you everything you need know."
There's been a lot of teaching throughout OTAs and mandatory minicamp as the new players are getting accustomed to the playbook. The challenge for training camp is figuring out how it all fits together.
"I think the biggest challenge is finding the right mix while also getting the guys the right repetition," defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said of the defensive line. "There's a lot of pieces; there's a lot of competition…There's so much that goes into it."