Buffalo Bills LB Joe Andreessen (44) - Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle/USA TODAY NETWORK
Buffalo, New York, is nicknamed “the City of Good Neighbors” by its residents. The rising city welcomed a new neighbor in Lancaster native and UB star “Buffalo Joe” Andreessen.
The undrafted rookie grew up a Buffalo Bills fan and actually attended Jim Kelly’s Football Camp one year. Now, can he take advantage of making the 53-man roster?
How it Began
Andreessen’s less than 2% odds of playing in the NFL started like every other football player’s dreams.
The 6’1″, 232 lb. linebacker attended Lancaster High School, where he was a star on the varsity football team.
Wanting to take the next step in his football career, he attended Bryant University for five years and received All-American honors after tallying a school record in 2022 of 116 tackles.
He then attended the University of Buffalo as a grad transfer.
There, he was the star of the Bulls linebacking corps despite a 3-9 season. He started in all 12 games and made 90 tackles, 12 tackles for negative yards, one sack, and a forced fumble.
Nevertheless, his season was good enough to earn him a rookie minicamp and tryout by his favorite pro team, the Buffalo Bills.
Just being thankful he even earned this opportunity, “Buffalo Joe” continued to grind and found himself starting in two of the three preseason games after his “childhood hero” and “new teammate” Matt Milano was hurt with a torn bicep muscle.
Preseason Games
Andreessen made his first start against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and it began fast. He made tackle after tackle and was basically all over the field.
The solid athlete started in place of Terrel Bernard and wore the green dot as the Bill’s “MIKE” linebacker.
He finished the game with an astounding 12 tackles, which led the team and showed that he belonged against the starting competition.
As for his second game against the Carolina Panthers, he again did not disappoint. The 24-year-old had a stellar outing with eight tackles and a strong finish.
Where Andreessen Excels
While he may be considered an NFL’s version of a walk-on, Andreessen has the mental attitude to be a dominant run-stopper and is instinctive on shutting down screen passes.
“Buffalo Joe” is also quick especially at getting downhill very fast. The athleticism and quickness is what’s going to make Andreessen become a dominant NFL linebacker.
Where He Can Improve
While we know that Andreessen will improve at stopping the run, he needs to improve on his coverage skills.
If he wants to get paid a second contract, he will need to become his version of Bernard and excel at both stopping the run and playing the ball in coverage.
If the rookie linebacker can work on his coverage skills to crack down on his mistakes, he can make a name for himself and the Bills in the NFL.
Making the 2024 All-Preseason Team
Andreessen’s performance was good enough to make the “2024 All-Preseason Team”, along with some other notable rookies.
He made it alongside Bo Nix (Denver Broncos – quarterback), Brian Thomas Jr. (Jacksonville Jaguars – receiver), and Dallas Turner (Minnesota Vikings – OLB), to name a few.
Now that “Buffalo Joe” has made the Bills’ 53-Man Roster, let’s hope that he can make “his” dreams come true and play well enough to stay on the team.
