Skip to main content
Come Fan with UsFriday, June 19, 2026

Shawne Merriman brought in to help Bills pass rush: Fantasy implications

With Mark Anderson out, Chan Gailey talks about bringing back the former Bill to help in passing situations. We break down the fantasy implications.

Brody Wheeler

The Buffalo Bills brought in Mark Anderson from the Patriots in the off-season to help with their pass rush, but he's had just a single sack in six games and is now out indefinitely with a knee injury. So the Bills brought back a familiar face, linebacker Shawne Merriman, to help as an additional pass-rusher in second-and-long and third-downs, according to head coach Chan Gailey.

There could be an issue with that theory, however, since Merriman hasn't been an effective pass rusher since 2007. After recording 39.5 sacks in his first three seasons with the Chargers, Merriman has five sacks in the last four years. Merriman had one sack in five games for Buffalo in 2011.

Fantasy Take: Merriman was a production monster when he started out in San Diego, but injuries have contributed to derailing his career since missing nearly the entire 2008 season. At this point, as Gailey basically said, Merriman is only a part-time player and he hasn’t even proven he can do that effectively.

It seems like at best, Merriman could grab a few sacks over the course of the season and have minimal effect on a defense that has been pretty terrible so far.

For more fantasy info, check out the SB Nation Fantasy War Room 4-8:30 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday. Check out SB Nation’s own Fantasy Football game, Pick 6!

Check out the SB Nation Channel on YouTube

NFL
Best DFS picks for Patriots vs Texans in Divisional roundBest DFS picks for Patriots vs Texans in Divisional round
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Divisional round DFS matchup between the Patriots and Texans

By Chet Gresham
NFL
Best DFS picks for Bears vs Rams in Divisional roundBest DFS picks for Bears vs Rams in Divisional round
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Divisional round DFS matchup between the Bears and Rams

By Chet Gresham
NFL
Best DFS picks for Broncos vs Bills in Divisional roundBest DFS picks for Broncos vs Bills in Divisional round
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Divisional round DFS matchup between the Broncos and Bills

By Chet Gresham
NFL
Best DFS picks for Seahawks vs 49ers in Divisional roundBest DFS picks for Seahawks vs 49ers in Divisional round
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Divisional round DFS matchup between the 49ers and Seahawks

By Chet Gresham
NFL
Best DFS picks for Patriots-Chargers in Wild Card round matchupBest DFS picks for Patriots-Chargers in Wild Card round matchup
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Wild Card matchup between the Patriots and Chargers

By Chet Gresham
NFL
Best DFS picks for Jaguars-Bills in the Wild Card round matchupBest DFS picks for Jaguars-Bills in the Wild Card round matchup
NFL

Chet Gresham takes us through his favorite picks for FanDuel’s Wild Card DFS matchup between the Jaguars and Bills

By Chet Gresham