BOCA RATON, Fla. -- Rex Ryan was the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens in 2006 when, after safety Will Demps signed as a free agent with the New York Giants, his team was in need of a starting safety.

Ryan scratched his head as Baltimore did not replace Demps in free agency and went through the first three rounds of the draft without addressing their glaring need at the position.

"What in the world are we doing?" Ryan thought to himself.

Ryan's frustrations grew when Baltimore selected Georgia Tech running back P.J. Daniels in the fourth round -- despite the Ravens' stacked depth chart behind Jamal Lewis at that position.

"I got ticked," Ryan recalled Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings. "The only time in my life I ever got upset at [general manager] Ozzie [Newsome] and them. So I went in there [to the draft room]. I was upset."

After the Ravens passed on the player that Ryan coveted -- Georgia Tech safety Dawan Landry -- in the fourth round, Ryan got his wish when they selected Landry in the fifth round. He became one of the Ravens' biggest draft steals, starting 14 games and snagging five interceptions his rookie season, beginning a long career playing in Ryan's defense both in Baltimore and with the New York Jets.

"I should have had a little more faith in Ozzie," Ryan admitted Tuesday.

The Buffalo Bills' second-year coach hopes that history repeats itself this spring at linebacker, where the Bills have a sizable hole left by the departure of Nigel Bradham to the Philadelphia Eagles. A full-time starter the past two seasons, Bradham has been a rising young player in Buffalo's defense but the Bills had to pull out of negotiations with him after their deal with Richie Incognito depleted their already-scarce cap space.

Without Bradham, the Bills are left with third-year middle linebacker Preston Brown and three others on the roster: Tony Steward, A.J. Tarpley and Kevin Reddick. The latter three players mostly made their mark on special teams last season, meaning the Bills could target the position early in next month's draft.

"It may very well be a case this year that we have the guy and we plug him in immediately and let’s see what happens," Ryan said Tuesday.

General manager Doug Whaley agreed that the Bills need to address the position but he did not commit to trying to find a starter at the spot.

"It’s going to be somewhere where we need at least depth," he said Monday at the owners meetings. "Absolutely. We’re going to try to add there, and try to add on the defensive line. But it won’t be something where we’re going to force and say we have to do it. Because [outside linebacker] Manny [Lawson] played those last two games [last season at inside linebacker] and played pretty well, so you have somebody there."

Aside from the issue of replacing Bradham, the Bills also need to get better play from Brown, whose strong production as a rookie in 2014 evaporated into a performance last season that Pro Football Focus ranked 90th out of 97 players at his position.

Brown, who expressed frustration at one point later in the season about play-calling communication problems from coaches during games, had his on-field responsibilities pared back late last season as Lawson took on more duties.

"He needs to step up. We handed that off to Manny Lawson. But Preston, to me, that -- that’s going to be a challenge," Ryan said Tuesday, adding that Brown needs to be the "quarterback of the defense" even though "it's not his personality off the field; he's a very quiet individual."

Ryan said the Bills will "put a pretty good coach" with Brown but declined to elaborate.

"We’ll find out," he said. "You guys know who it is."