JA #44

Joe Andreessen

Linebacker · Buffalo

A Buffalo native who went from undrafted walk-on to a special-teams leader for his hometown team.

Joe Andreessen grew up in Buffalo dreaming of playing for the Bills, and after five seasons at Bryant and a final year at the University at Buffalo, he made that dream real by earning a roster spot as an undrafted free agent. He has since become a reliable special-teams contributor and depth linebacker for the team he grew up watching.

★ Led University at Buffalo with 90 tackles in 2023

★ Made Buffalo Bills' 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent

★ Team-high 8 special-teams tackles as a rookie (2024)

Path to the league

Andreessen played five seasons of linebacker at Bryant, an FCS program, before using a COVID-era extra year of eligibility to transfer home to the University at Buffalo for the 2023 season. He started all 12 games there, leading the team with 90 tackles including a team-high 12 for loss. He went undrafted in 2024, signed with Buffalo after a tryout at rookie minicamp, and made the Bills' initial 53-man roster.

Career highlights

Andreessen's story resonated locally as a hometown player making good, and he backed it up on the field, playing over 70% of Buffalo's special-teams snaps as a rookie in 2024 and recording a team-high eight special-teams tackles that season while adding 26 total tackles.

2025 season recap

Andreessen played in all 17 games in 2025, recording 35 combined tackles (14 solo, 21 assisted) while remaining a core special-teams player. He posted a standout performance in Buffalo's Week 17 win over the Jets, finishing as the team's leading tackler in that game.