Connor McGovern takes center stage for the Bills in free agency

Another big name in the long list of potential free-agent losses for the Buffalo Bills this season is Connor McGovern, the team’s center over the last two seasons. In that time, quarterback Josh Allen saw a career-low season in sacks with 14 during the 2024 campaign. Allen also saw a career worst in 2025, with 40 sacks.

Now obviously there’s more to the story than McGovern, and both seasons saw effective scoring units. So let’s hit the film for the center to see if he’s a priority to re-sign.

The Film

To get a good bead on McGovern, I took a look at arguably the toughest game for the Bills offensively this past season. Against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Bills gave up five sacks, 3.63 yards per rush, and a meager 12 points. The passing game’s numbers look good overall, but the Eagles forced a lot of underneath throws en route to making Allen uncomfortable. A cold and wet afternoon/evening certainly contributed to some degree, but all the better to see what a lineman is made of.

By choosing this game, I definitely uncovered some warts, but still saw enough positives to say I’m crossing my fingers for a McGovern return. If an All-Pro shakes loose on the cheap then sure, let’s go get that guy instead. Without a sure hit though, it might be a big gamble with an important position.

Part of my opinion is formed by my overall philosophy on offensive lines. Continuity and chemistry are critical. (As is alliteration.) A McGovern return will make some of the more complicated things in the video above easier. So if president of football operations/general manager Brandon Beane can make it work, let’s hope he does.

Play notes:

1. I like McGovern’s use of space here. He positions himself to look like a typical block to seal off the lane to the quarterback and running back.
2. McGovern starts off shaky, recovers well, and buys Allen time and space to scramble forward. Not every “win” is a clean one, and this is a good example.
3. This one was just brutal and it should have been at least an illegal-hands-to-the-face flag. This play is a good illustration of how the team can be successful despite an individual loss.
4. Let’s get back to the positives. The quick help for the first block is rapidly followed by a second-level block. If running back James Cook III wasn’t hit before that level, it’s likely this is a better run.
5. This isn’t the best block you’ll see in his film, but the timing on the turn is impeccable. I want to be clear that McGovern’s block is good enough (and this was one of his worst days). This is also one of those things a new player at the position would need to get acquainted with. It’s not complicated on its own, but it does add some complexity to the tool kit.
6. I wanted to emphasize this was arguably his worst game of the year so here’s this play for your amusement.
7. One could argue that McGovern could have done more to stop the spin move, negating the early wins on the block. I’m not the one to do that. A good spin move is very hard to stop without a holding flag, and McGovern still gave Cook plenty of space. The running back doesn’t stop until well after that spin move is irrelevant.
8. For this play I wanted to show again how synergy with your teammates matters on the line. Passing off the stunt expertly here was one of the best plays of the day.
9. Last but not least, McGovern knows Josh Allen.