Poona

Ford

Coming off back-to-back underwhelming campaigns, Ford missed a big chunk of 2023 with injury. He will be hoping for a “Harbaugh boost” under a coaching staff known for extreme discipline and focus on fundamentals. Although he has 11 career sacks from the interior, Ford’s job in L.A. will be stopping the run.

While Kaiir Elam gets a lot of attention for being inactive since he was Buffalo’s first round pick last year; however, Poona Ford may be the bigger name. Ford was active for each of Buffalo’s first two games but will take a seat in Week 3 with the Bills choosing to activate DE Kingsley Jonathan instead. The choice signals that Buffalo is opting to go with an extra pass-rusher than they have the first two games. It signals how valuable Buffalo thinks getting pressure on Sam Howell will be; however, if the rain comes in the middle of the game, as expected, and this becomes a game about controlling the running games, the Bills could miss Ford.

Seattle adding Cameron Young in the draft apparently made them comfortable enough to not match this deal. Ford is coming off a rough year after being asked to work out of his comfort zone in different gaps. He’d had four straight years of PFF grades over 68.4 and was a good run defender prior to 2023. This looks like a solid bounceback pickup for Buffalo.

Ford was an undrafted free agent in 2018 but quickly became one of the twitchier defensive tackles in the NFL. Now he’s paid like it. His deal is worth “close to $14 million” per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. With the extension, Poona and the Seahawks will dodge the restricted free agency tender. The Texas alum has tackle counts of 21, 32, and 40 over his first three seasons as a rotational interior lineman. Ford and Jarran Reed are a strong duo up front. Seattle was ninth in rushing EPA defense in 2020.

The player said he’d play, but coach Pete Carroll mentioned Ford would still be limited mid-week. Bryan Mone would start again if Ford’s soft tissue injury doesn’t heal in time.

Ford suffered a calf strain in Seattle’s season opener. He started and had two tackles before going down. Bryan Mone is Ford’s backup.

Ford (6’0/306) made 30 starts on the Longhorns’ defensive line, earning 2017 Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year and logging 20.5 career tackles for loss but only four sacks. Snubbed for a Combine invite, Ford tested as a sub-par athlete at Texans’ Pro Day. Ford won with leverage and power in the Big 12, but he seems likely to struggle to carry over that success into the NFL.