The NFL calendar has officially flipped to October, but Greg Rousseau has one more piece of business to collect from September.
Rousseau has been named AFC Defensive Player of the Month, the first monthly award of his NFL career and the first for a Buffalo Bills defensive player since Jordan Poyer earned the honor in December 2017. And considering what Rousseau did during the Bills’ 3-0 start, this one shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
Three games. Six sacks.
Rousseau opened the season with two sacks in each of Buffalo’s first three games, giving him an NFL-leading six sacks in September. He also forced three fumbles, tying for the league lead. NFL statistics confirm Rousseau finished the month with 15 total tackles, 12 solo tackles, six sacks, three forced fumbles and a pass defended.
But the numbers become even more impressive when you start attaching some history to them. Rousseau became just the third player in NFL history to record at least two sacks in each of his first three games of a season, joining Mark Gastineau in 1984 and Kevin Greene in 1998.
He also joined some pretty exclusive company in Buffalo. Rousseau became only the third Bills player to record three consecutive games with at least two sacks, joining Bruce Smith in 1990 and Bryce Paup in 1995. That is not a bad pair of names for Groot to find himself standing beside.
Consistency was the story
There wasn’t one game doing the heavy lifting, either.
Rousseau recorded two sacks against the Houston Texans in Week 1, two more against the Detroit Lions in Week 2 and another two against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 3. He added two forced fumbles against Houston and another against Detroit.
His six sacks are already within one of the seven sacks he recorded during the entire 2025 season. Rousseau’s career high is eight, which he recorded in both 2022 and 2024.
Yes, we are only three games into the season, but I think Rousseau might be a fan of the new defensive scheme.
From weekly recognition to a monthly honor
Rousseau’s start has been one of the biggest stories of Buffalo’s undefeated September, and we’ve been watching the streak build each week.
Now the NFL has acknowledged his success in September.
Three games.
Three consecutive two-sack performances.
And now, AFC Defensive Player of the Month. Not a bad opening month for Groot.
