Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver signed a four-year, $68 million contract extension that includes $45 million guaranteed. It was an unexpected deal that Buffalo News columnist Ryan O’Halloran called a “head-scratcher” for its timing.
It puts pressure on Oliver to live up to a deal that runs through 2027 after having yet to make a Pro Bowl or All-Pro.
“I don’t feel any pressure; I feel like I’m going to outplay the contract, to be honest,” Oliver said Tuesday, via O’Halloran. “I just want to shut everybody up who said I was overpaid [with the new contract]. Just sit back and watch me.”
The extension allowed the Bills to lower his cap hit from $10.753 million in 2023 to $4.978 million, and it also guarantees the team will have at least one defensive tackle under contract for 2024. Bills General Manager Brandon Beane said the team thinks Oliver’s best football is ahead of him, which is why they were willing to commit to him long term.
“[Defensive tackle] is a premium position in our league, and they’re hard to find, especially if you’re having the success we have and where we draft [late in the first round],” Beane said.
Oliver, the ninth overall pick in 2019, wanted to remain in Buffalo and keep building what the Bills are building.
“I feel comfortable here. I love it here. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Oliver said. “I wouldn’t want any [other] fan base than ours. When you’re driving down Big Tree [Road] and people kind of know your car, and you’re driving by, they go, ‘Let’s go, Ed,’ that’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before.”
Oliver, 25, has 151 tackles, 30 tackles for loss, 14.5 sacks, 42 quarterback hits and four forced fumbles.
