- With the hiring of new HC Sean McDermott, the Buffalo Bills will be moving back to a 4-3 defense, a scheme which should get edge defender Jerry Hughes playing his best.
- Hughes has been miscast the last two seasons under former HC Rex Ryan, predominately playing outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme. A return to playing defensive end in a 4-3 will get Hughes back to doing what he does best, getting after the QB.
- Last season Hughes had his worst overall PFF grades of his tenure in Buffalo with a 66.5 overall grade and a 76.0 pass rushing grade.
- Hughes played in a 4-3 scheme in 2013 and 2014 under DCs Mike Pettine and Jim Schwartz, which led to PFF overall grades of 86.7 (2013) and 84.2 (2014). Those grades ranked tenth and seventeenth among edge defenders those seasons.
- Hughes’ pass rush productivity was much better when he was in a 4-3 scheme. Hughes’ PRP in 2013 and 2014 was 15.4 and 10.5 respectively, creating 120 total pressures for a combined 23 sacks in those seasons, compared to PRP marks of 8.4 and 9.2 for 109 total pressures and 11 sacks the two seasons since (PRP measures pressure created on a per snap basis with weighting towards sacks).
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