The hundreds of hours in the film room are paying off for Paul Posluszny. He plays with an intensity bordering on fury. He's decisive, aggressive and smart.

What coach Perry Fewell has is a linebacker who is sure of where he should be and what he should do. He can easily recite the Buffalo Bills defensive scheme and is willing to pay almost any price for success, whether it be in the weight room, film room or on the practice field.

Posluszny is coming into his own this season. The Bills might be concerned about their rush

defense but the one element of their unit that has been all right has been Posluszny, a

third-year man from Penn State, in the middle. He is the Bills' leader in tackles with 76,

three more than safety George Wilson. Posluszny's 58 solo tackles are also a team high.

"A middle linebacker has got to get to the ball, right?" Posluszny said. "With the type of

defense that we have, I get to line up in the middle of the formation all the time so running

to either side I should have an opportunity to make plays."

But it was Posluszny's time away from the field — when he missed four games with a

broken bone in his left arm — when Fewell learned just how valuable the linebacker is at

directing traffic.

"When we lost him, I was lost," said Fewell, who also doubles as the team's defensive

coordinator. "Paul runs our defense, he gets us in every call. I can run a sophisticated game

plan with Paul. He is a football junkie. He eats it, he breathes it, he sleeps it."

Fewell said with Posluszny out of the lineup, he couldn't call as many plays as he would

like.

"There were plays that happened that Paul would have gotten us out of, but the other guys

couldn't get us out of those plays," Fewell said. "When we watch tape and say, "Boy, this is a

great defense but if they do this, can we get out of this particular call?' Paul can get you

out of that particular call. The other guys just don't see the formation, they can see the

set, but they don't see everything that needs to be seen."

During the offseason Posluszny focused on improving his technique, using his hands and

getting off blocks. He has a better understanding of the rudiments of the passing game and how

opponents attack the Bills.

"I've done those things a lot better than in years past," he said. "I'm kind of upset about

missing those four games. Four games is a lot of time when you get only 16 shots."

Now, he's working on making more plays in pass coverage and on blitzing.

"I only have one interception, and I'd like to get my hands on more balls," said Posluszny,

who also has a team-high three forced fumbles. "Blitzing is not something I necessarily do a

whole lot but when I get my chances I want to make an impact. I want to get to the

quarterback. There's always little things you have to clean up with your technique or reading

your keys and being a step faster."

When changes are made on the fly, it's Posluszny's job to get the others on the same page.

In the middle, Posluszny has to move more slowly, reacting to what the offense does and what

he sees. He does his job well.

"You're pulling your hair out because you're like, "I don't know if I can call this because

they gain advantage because we can't call a counter to what they want to do,' " Fewell said.

"Paul's into it. He's an extension of us to a large degree."

Still, Posluszny isn't close to being satisfied with his development.

"I made some improvements, but there's always things I need to work on. There's always

things I want to get better at. It's that double-edged sword: I'm getting better but I still

have a long way to go."