The Buffalo Bills and general manager Brandon Beane have gone out of their way over the last week to double down on the team's young core surrounding league MVP Josh Allen.
Wide receiver Khalil Shakir, linebacker Terrel Bernard, and edge rusher Greg Rousseau have all received contract extensions this week as a sign of how much the current regime trusts their production and potential.
Now it's time for those players, especially Rousseau, to take the next steps as stars.
Rousseau led the team in sacks last season with eight, but has not recorded over 10 sacks once in his four years with the team. That's something Beane and the Bills want to see changed.
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"I thought Greg did a nice job, had some good games for us, still showed some ascension," general manager Brandon Beane said at the NFL combine. "I don't think he's necessarily peaked out or anything. I think Greg needs to continue to take another step. We would like to see Greg be a double-digit sack player, and you need, you got to get that quarterback down.
"I know he would want that too, but I thought Greg was really one of our most consistent D-linemen all year and look forward to him going into Year 5. Hopefully, even taking another step for us."
Buffalo's core is strong as is and they are all still relatively young. But if they want to remain championship contenders, that group will need to play even better than they have to this point.
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