Greg Rousseau’s September was the kind of start that forces the league to take notice.
The Buffalo Bills outside linebacker was named AFC Defensive Player of the Month on Wednesday, earning the first monthly honor of his NFL career after a blistering opening stretch that featured six sacks in three games. Rousseau also piled up 15 tackles, eight tackles for loss, three forced fumbles and a pass defensed while helping Buffalo get out to a 3-0 start.
The production was as consistent as it was loud. Rousseau recorded two sacks in each of the Bills’ wins, giving him the league lead in sacks and a share of the lead in forced fumbles.
He opened with two sacks and two forced fumbles, plus four tackles, in Buffalo’s trip to Houston. He followed that with two sacks, a forced fumble and three tackles against Detroit.
He closed the month with eight tackles and two more sacks in the Bills’ 24-16 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
That kind of pressure from an edge rusher is rare enough on its own. Rousseau also joined a tiny group of players in NFL history by becoming the third since 1982, when sacks became an official statistic, to post two or more sacks in each of his team’s first three games. The only others to do it were Mark Gastineau with the New York Jets in 1984 and Pro Football Hall of Famer Kevin Greene with Carolina in 1998.
The award also puts Rousseau in select company within the Bills’ history. He became the fifth Buffalo linebacker to win AFC Defensive Player of the Month, following Lorenzo Alexander in October 2016, Cornelius Bennett in October 1988, Sam Cowart in November 2000 and Paup in November 1995. It also made him the fourth former Miami linebacker to claim the honor, joining Jessie Armstead in October 1999, Jon Beason in October 2008 and Ray Lewis in November 2003.
Kansas City running back Kenneth Walker was named the AFC offensive player of the month for September, while Cincinnati kicker Evan McPherson took the special teams award.
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