You can certainly check off the blood line box when it comes to Josiah Totter and football. His father, Jeremiah Sr., played 11 years in the NFL with Philadelphia, Washington and Tampa Bay and was a four time Pro Bowler. His older brother, Jeremiah Jr., was drafted by the Eagles in 2024 and was a member of their Super Bowl LIX winning team.
A native of Philadelphia, Josiah Trotter began his college career at the University of West Virginia. He spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons with the Mountaineers although he redshirted in 2023 after suffering a lower leg injury.
In 2024, Trotter was Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year and Honorable Mention All Big 12. He had 92 tackles, four tackles for loss, an interception and half a sack. Trotter transferred to Missouri for what turned out to be his final season in college.
He started 12 games for the Tigers, only missing the Gator Bowl after undergoing knee surgery. The 6'0", 237 pound Trotter led the team in tackles and tackles for loss. He had seven quarterback hurries and was a key part of a Tigers unit that ranked eighth in the nation in total defense. For his efforts, Trotter was named first team All SEC.
Trotter says he always plays with a chip on his shoulder as he tries to be better than his father and his brother.
Joe Marino provides draft analysis for WGR. His website is thejoemarino.com and you can subscribe to his Locked On Bills Podcast. Joe shares his thoughts on Trotter.
Positives:
Physical, instinctive, aggressive downhill player. He's got an explosive trigger. If you want to a guy that's going to just fire into the line of scrimmage with reckless abandon, that is Josiah Trotter. Heavy hands to stack and shed blocks. He's got a very appealing blitzing profile. That type of urgency that he plays with, the power, but he's also got some rush moves. He has some jab step, he'll work in a Euro step. He's got some different hand swipes that he can use to be a very effective blitzer as well. Overall, he's like a hammer, a true hammer as a tackler.
Negatives:
It's coverage instincts. They didn't want him on the field a lot in passing downs., You could tell, they took him off the field. Even when he was on the field, there were times where he was very unsure, playing in coverage. I would say that he plays full speed and also makes full speed mistakes. Whenever there's misdirection, play fakes, he's going to bite hard. Also, he's a two year player, that has only played about 1100 career snaps. I feel like there's some time on task that he needs to really flesh it out. But there's a lot to like about his temperament and demeanor, and of course, the bloodlines.
The NFL Draft will be held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.
The Bills defense has a number of needs going into the draft. Linebacker is one and Josiah Trotter is one of the top LB prospects.
