The Buffalo Bills are adding some veteran competition to their linebacker room this summer, adding a player with a longstanding link to head coach Sean McDermott.
The team announced on June 10 that they signed linebacker Shaq Thompson to a one-year deal. Thompson had spent his entire 10-year career with the Carolina Panthers, playing under McDermott at his last stop before becoming the head coach in Buffalo.
Bills Add Trusted Veteran
Thompson came into the NFL as a first-round pick of the Panthers in 2015, going on to appear in 123 games with 112 starts over the next 10 years. Thompson amassed 752 career tackles including 54 tackles for a loss, 32 quarterback hits, 12 sacks, and three interceptions.
Thompson had been hit by injuries over the last two seasons, limiting him to just six total games.
McDermott, who served as Thompson’s defensive coordinator during the linebacker’s first two seasons in the NFL, told reporters on Tuesday that he would be a good addition to the defense.
McDermott said Thompson “is all about the right stuff,” WGR 550 reporter Sal Capaccio noted in a post on X.
“Has had some injuries, but has had position flexibility and called him ‘tough’ and ‘nasty,’ ” Capaccio added.
The Bills have been known to bring back many of McDermott’s former players, though there are few remaining from his tenure as defensive coordinator with the Panthers. The Bills have instead focused on bringing many of their own players back in recent years, including two major additions to the defense this offseason in cornerbacks Tre’Davious White and Dane Jackson.
Matt Milano Has Something to Prove
Thompson will now have the chance to compete for playing time in a linebacking room filled with veterans, including Matt Milano. NFL.com writer Nick Shook identified Milano as a “make or break” player for the Bills, noting that the 31-year-old has dealt with a string of injuries and could have one final chance to reach the Super Bowl.
“Football can be a cruel game sometimes,” Shook wrote.
“Take the recent turn in Milano’s career, for example. He finally received All-Pro recognition in 2022, only to follow it up with two injury-plagued seasons that limited him to a combined total of nine games in that stretch.”
Shook added that this could be the final chance for Milano to break through and reach the Super Bowl, having been part of the Bills since they broke their playoff drought in 2017 and helping them turn into title contenders.
“He’s in the final year of his contract and turns 31 years old in July,” Shook wrote. “His inclusion on this list isn’t so much about preserving or capitalizing on significant earning power, but it is tied to returning strong with the only NFL team he’s ever known — a team that has Super Bowl ambitions.”
The Bills kept their linebacking corps largely intact this offseason, making few big additions and tending to other needs in the NFL draft, including the secondary and defensive line. The team also brought on a big name to the pass rushing group, adding Joey Bosa on a one-year contract and parting ways with veteran Von Miller.
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