When Efe Obada got down from the podium and went through the doorway toward the Buffalo Bills' locker room, the defensive end was greeted with a song.
“Sack man, sack man! Yeah that’s him!” Jordan Poyer sang and somewhat screamed.
With No. 2 wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders out because of a knee injury against the Carolina Panthers, Davis stepped into the starting lineup and came through in a big way during a 31-14 win at Highmark Stadium.
Obada had two sacks against his former team as the Bills beat the Carolina Panthers 31-14 on Sunday at Highmark Stadium. Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was sacked four times.
It was a new experience for Obada, who spent the previous four seasons in Carolina.
“When I was playing with him, he used to have that red jersey, so that was the quickest ride to go home if you hit him,” Obada said. “But no, it just felt really good to hit him now. I asked for his jersey, so I’m putting that out here now, so I can hold him accountable.”
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“We all know who we have next week,” Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen said. “It’s no secret. … Every game from here on out for us is a playoff game, and we’ve got to treat it as such.”
Obada had 5.5 sacks last year with the Panthers before signing a one-year deal as part of the Bills' effort to revamp their defensive line and get better at generating pressure on opposing quarterbacks. He has played in only eight games this season and about 20% of the defensive snaps. He entered the game with 1.5 sacks for the season before than doubling that total Sunday.
Obada’s sacks on Newton came on the same drive in the fourth quarter, separated by just one play. On second-and-10, he brought down Newton for a loss of eight. The Panthers picked up eight yards on a pass to running back Ameer Abdullah on the next play. Then on fourth-and-10, with the Panthers going for it from the Buffalo 46, Obada tallied another eight-yard sack.
“Just trying to do my job, beat my guy,” Obada said. “Came around the edge on the second one. The first one, just hit the B gap, and he was right there, just still holding the ball. Just great effort from my coverage, and just allowed me to get there.”
Teammate Harrison Phillips started clapping Obada on the back at the end of the answer.
“Winning one-on-ones is what he did,” Phillips added.
Don't miss Katherine Fitzgerald's quarter-by-quarter analysis of the Buffalo Bills' 31-14 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Coach Sean McDermott and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier both noted this week that they needed to see more from their pass rush. McDermott was glad not only for Obada’s sacks, but also for their timing.
“Especially one in a big moment of the game there when we needed it,” McDermott said. “That four-man rush, getting that four-man rush going, it’s important for us.”
The four sacks were the most for the Bills defense since they had six in Week 2 against the Dolphins. Rookie Greg Rousseau had two sacks in that game, the first Bill to do so since Ed Oliver in 2019. Obada is the first Bill to have a two-sack game since Rousseau.
Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds credited Frazier for an aggressive pass rush.
“Even some of the ones that we didn’t get sacks, I think just the pressure, helped us out defensively,” Edmunds said. “It made the ball come out quick. The credit goes out to him because coach is the one that calls the plays. The guys just took advantage of it. ...
“Efe, he made a lot of big-time plays. A couple of big-time sacks when we needed it most. Credit to him, and coach did a good job putting guys in the position.”
With Panthers kicker Zane Gonzalez out with a groin injury from warmups, the Bills knew there would be some philosophical adjustments on defense.
“Yeah, first we had the mindset, too, that we had to treat third down like second down,” Phillips said. “There could be heavy run, knowing that they’re gonna go back to a fourth-down play anytime they cross the 50 yard-line. That was definitely on our radar. But really, just great team defense. As you guys saw, guys coming up making plays, guys doing the right thing, rushing coverage, working together. So that was definitely a huge part in this victory.”
The Panthers were 1-for-5 on fourth down. Obada’s second sack was on their final attempt of the game.
Obada, who was born in Nigeria but began playing football in England, came to the NFL through the International Player Pathway. His journey to the NFL and his warm personality have those around the league rooting for him. He spent a while Sunday night replying with thank-you tweets to different fans on Twitter who had reached out, saying he was "grateful for all the love." The support from the Bills' locker room was also clear.
“Extremely great teammate, great player,” Poyer said. “And he just comes to work every day and does his job, so it’s exciting to see him get back-to-back plays, two sacks, so extremely happy for him.”
“Feels good, man,” Obada added. “Stay humble, get focused, get back on the mission. But it felt good. Just grateful for the opportunity to be out here.”
