Pat Williams has taken the top defensive tackle spot of the decade, and we now turn to the second big guy in the middle of our four-man line. None of the tackles below spent a majority of the decade on the Buffalo Bills D-line, with Kyle Williams the longest-tenured at four years. I've added Ted Washington between the first and second DT post. His omission on the first post was an oversight, but a rectifiable one. The Bills actually have several quality candidates to fill this spot, so let's get voting.
Ted Washington
Washington was signed by the Bills in 1995. He would no doubt be the NT of the decade for the '90s after two Pro Bowls and starting virtually every game for the second half of the decade. He only played one year for the Bills in 2000, which happens to coincide with the last decade the Bills played the 3-4 defense. Washington was so good during that season he was named as one of the AFC DTs in the Pro Bowl. He had 2.5 sacks and 37 tackles in his 16 starts on the Bills' third-ranked defense.
Sam Adams
The Bills signed Adams from the Raiders following the 2002 season. In his three years in Buffalo, he started 40 games and amassed 65 tackles, 13 sacks, two interceptions (one of which went back for a touchdown), batted down six passes, and recovered a fumble. In 2003 and 2004, Adams teamed with Pat Williams to own the middle of the Bills' second-ranked defense in back-to-back years.
Kyle Williams
Williams was drafted in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft. Big Kyle started 11 games in his rookie season and 57 games in four seasons in Buffalo which is tops among the DTs on the list. For his career, he has 8 sacks, one pass defended, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and 139 tackles. His sack totals trail only Sam Adams and his tackles are more than anyone remaining. In 2009, Williams' agent told the media he was a Pro Bowl alternate after he had the best season of his career.
Larry Tripplett
Larry Tripplett was signed as a free agent from the Indianapolis Colts. In two unremarkable seasons in Buffalo, he compiled 3.5 sacks, one interception, 8 defended passes, two fumbles forced and two recovered, and 38 tackles while starting all 32 games.
Marcus Stroud
The Bills traded third- and fifth-round picks to acquire Stroud from the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2008. In his two seasons in Buffalo, he has started 31 games, making 67 tackles, 4.5 sacks, forcing a fumble, and recovering three. He's also batted down 15 passes.
Leave your voting rationale in the comments section. We'll move onto the Defensive End position next.
Previous Installments: QB, RB 1, RB 2, WR 1, WR 2, TE, OT 1, OT 2, OG 1, OG 2, OC, P/K, DT 1