ORCHARD PARK - Josh Allen went on record Tuesday afternoon by saying that this iteration of the Buffalo Bills’ offensive line is “the best I’ve ever been around.”

His opinion matters the most, but really, anyone who has followed the Bills during Allen’s career knows this, too.

Left tackle Dion Dawkins is having yet another Pro Bowl season and some might say this could be the best he has ever played. Center Mitch Morse remains a steadying force in the middle. And by signing Connor McGovern in free agency and drafting O’Cyrus Torrence in the second round, the Bills made major upgrades at both guard spots.

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Which brings us to right tackle Spencer Brown, a 2021 third-round pick who struggled during his first two NFL seasons for a variety of reasons though primarily due to injuries, and entered 2023 as a big-time question mark. He knew it, general manager Brandon Beane knew it, and coach Sean McDermott knew it.

In his third season, Brown had to prove that he is a player the Bills could rely on or else his spot in the lineup would be up for grabs. He has certainly done that.

“Spencer Brown has always taken pride in being accountable and being relied upon and I think these past two years have not been the easiest for him with his health and that certainly affected his play,” Morse said. “Now he’s really taking onus of his craft and being a professional and understanding what that means to him.”

Brown lost his entire 2020 college season at Northern Iowa due to the pandemic and that lost playing and development time, plus some nagging injuries, limited his effectiveness as a 2021 rookie. Then in that offseason he underwent back surgery and while he played 16 games counting the postseason in 2022, he struggled all season to find consistency and it raised questions heading into 2023.

After the season-ending loss to the Bengals, McDermott said of Brown, “There was some ups and downs like anyone, overall. I think he had some moments when he was really good and you could say ‘Hey, that was really strong play against a good pass rusher’ and then some other ones where you’d say, ‘Hey, you know, do we need to add a chip to help out here?’ And you don’t want to have to do that all the time.”

Beane’s end of 2022 review of Brown was similar, but he gave him a little more grace. “We honestly didn’t think that we would play him game one, but he got himself there without all the (training camp) reps that you need as a veteran,’ Beane said. “What I saw in Spencer is a guy, the second half of the season that played better than the first half of the season. So I’ve got a lot of confidence in him. I would ask people that are critical of him, give him some do.”

Every offensive tackle needs help once in a while from a back or a tight end, but it has been less necessary this season on Brown’s side of the line. According to Pro Football Focus, there are 31 offensive tackles - left and right - who have played at least 300 run blocking snaps this season and they have Brown graded as the eighth-best in that group.

Bills tackle Spencer Brown uses size to power improved running game

The massive 6-foot-8, 310-pounder has used his size and power to blow defenders backward and create gaps for James Cook to run through, never more impressively than last week when PFF gave Brown his highest run block grade of the year.

Conversely, there is still work to be done as a pass blocker because PFF also gave Brown his worst pass blocking grade of the season against Dallas as he faced Micah Parsons and Demarcus Lawrence, though he did not allow a sack. For the season, 29 tackles have played at least 500 pass block snaps and Brown grades out 19th in that group as his 35 pressures sit right in the middle.

Saturday night in Los Angeles he’s likely to see plenty of Chargers star edge rusher Khalil Mack who has accumulated 15 sacks, 70 pressures, eight batted down passes and five forced fumbles.

“It doesn’t change,” Brown said with a knowing smile. “I said this earlier this year, but the game is a passing game with spread offenses and every team has great pass rushers week in and week out. That’s what we look forward to.”

Brown knew this was going to be a big year for him, that he had to make tangible strides, and to his credit he wasn’t willing to lean on excuses regarding missing his last college season and dealing with injuries.

“I wouldn’t say it was tough or bumpy, I think it’s expected,” he said of the growing pains he endured. “Missing those years and the health deal and everything like that … I think it’s the same for everybody. You want to grow each week and each year and work on things that you’re not excelling at and then focus on the things you are excelling at and use those to your advantage. Just finding that groove right now for me is a big thing.”

One of the keys for Brown has been a second year being coached by Aaron Kromer, widely regarded as one of the best offensive line coaches in the league.

“Absolutely, the offensive line is not what it is without coach Kromer,” Brown said. “The best O-line coach I’ve ever had. It’s gonna be a sad day when he’s not my coach. You really got to enjoy it while he’s here. And even when he’s gone, I’ll be still using the same technique and if I become a coach someday, I’ll be teaching his technique as well because he has his core of what he wants to get done. But he also facilitates to different guys and their strengths and he sees it the way he communicates with us week to week. I can’t say enough good things about him from a coach or personal perspective.”

Morse agrees wholeheartedly about what Kromer has done to help make, as Allen said, the best line he’s played against. However, Morse also believes that Brown deserves kudos for implementing what he’s being taught because sometimes not even the best coaching can take a player to the next level.

“Everyone kind of tries to find out how to be professional, you try to emulate other guys’ techniques and stuff and sometimes that’s just not right for you,” Morse said. “And I’m not saying that he was doing anything wrong, I think he just found what worked for him. He’s sticking to his routine, he’s being accountable, he’s taking to coaching and it’s just been such a privilege to see him kind of lock down that right tackle position where I know he’s been getting a lot of flack in the past.”

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana and on Threads @salmaiorana1. To subscribe to Sal's newsletter, Bills Blast, which comes out twice a week during the season, please follow this link: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills tackle Spencer Brown uses his size to blow defenders backwards