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Marcell Dareus missed the first four games of the Buffalo Bills' season after being suspended for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. Now, he is expected miss his first game back from that suspension, per a report from ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Buffalo has been a middle-of-the-pack defense so far this season in Dareus' absence, ranking 17th in yards allowed per game, seventh in points allowed per game, and 14th in Football Outsiders' defensive DVOA. The Bills have done a good job getting after the quarterback (13 sacks in four games and an above-average pressure rate, per data from Pro Football Focus) and stopping the run (3.6 yards per carry allowed) but they have had some struggles on the back end in the secondary.

Dareus obviously adds to Buffalo's strength up front in all phases of the game, and he would help the back end too by putting more pressure on quarterbacks, forcing them to get the ball out quicker or else risk taking a sack. He's been one of the best two-way defensive tackles in the league for a while now, and slotting him in next to Kyle Williams on the defensive front would allow the Bills to get back to doing what they do best defensively.

Luckily for Buffalo they are not playing strong offenses the next few weeks: they play the Rams on Sunday, followed by the 49ers and Dolphins. After that comes the Patriots, Seahawks, and Bengals, though, so they will definitely want to get Dareus back on the field as quickly as possible so he is ramped up to full speed for those matchups.