The Buffalo Bills relied on their Carolina connection to make their latest player acquisition Tuesday.
Shortly before the start of the Bills’ three-day, mandatory minicamp, the team announced that it had signed linebacker Shaq Thompson.
Bills head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane both were in Carolina when the Panthers selected Thompson in the first round of the 2015 NFL draft.
“Really, really good player,” McDermott said of Thompson. “Tough, smart. He’s been through some injuries over the course of the last few years, so that’s been hard to watch from a distance. … But when you talk about a player that can play more than one position, you talk about a player that can help create a certain toughness or bring a certain toughness with him, nastiness to a defense, to a team, he’s all about the right stuff as a player and a person.”
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To McDermott’s point, Thompson’s career has been derailed by injuries over the past two seasons. A broken fibula ended his 2023 season in Week 2, and a torn Achilles ended his 2024 season in Week 4.
Buffalo Bills Mandatory Mini Camp (copy)
New Bills linebacker Shaq Thompson participates in Tuesday's minicamp practice. Thompson comes to Buffalo after 10 seasons with the Panthers. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
The Panthers announced in February that they would not bring back Thompson. He was one of only two players remaining from the 2015 Carolina team that went 15-1 and lost in the Super Bowl to the Denver Broncos. McDermott served as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator then, while Beane was the team’s assistant general manager and Al Holcomb, the Bills’ current linebackers coach, held the same position for Carolina.
Thompson has stayed in touch with all three of them throughout his career, which made Buffalo a natural next stop in his NFL journey.
“I've been there with them in 2015 in Carolina, so kind of just always had that bond there,” he said. “You know, I was a young pup back in the day. Now 11 years, seasoned vet, so time is coming around. … It's crazy to see all the stuff that they were teaching back then is still implemented now.”
Thompson’s 470 solo tackles rank fourth in Panthers history. In the era of unrestricted free agency, very few players stay in one spot for a full decade, which speaks to Thompson’s value. Asked to describe what the Bills are getting in him on the field, he listed the attributes:
“Physical. Downhill. Violent. Leadership. Encouraging others. Tone setter. Trash talker,” he said. “I'm a team guy first, right? I want my teammates to eat, whether that's me blitzing and sacrificing myself for somebody else to make a play.”
He participated on a very limited basis in Tuesday’s minicamp practice, saying afterward that he expects to be able to practice without limitations once training camp starts next month at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford.
It’s safe to say he won’t need a long time to learn the defense, referring to it Tuesday as the one he grew up in.
“The biggest thing is just terminology for me, but everything is what I learned in the first five years of my career,” he said.
Thompson has played just six games over the past two seasons, but is determined not to let his career come to an end because of an injury.
“That’s just a mindset thing for me,” he said. “I want to end on my terms. … God had a plan for me, you know, whether it was there or not there. He had a plan for me and I guess I'm here where his plan was. So I'm happy to be here.”
Nonparticipants
The Bills had a number of players who did not participate in Tuesday’s practice because of various, unspecified injuries. The list included running back Ty Johnson, center Connor McGovern, wide receiver K.J. Hamler, defensive end Joey Bosa, linebacker Baylon Spector and defensive backs Damar Hamlin, Cole Bishop and Cam Lewis. Cornerback Taron Johnson wore a red, noncontact jersey, but was able to participate on a limited basis.
McDermott said he did not anticipate any of those players missing the start of training camp because of what they are dealing with currently.
Andreessen makes pick
Quarterback Josh Allen was intercepted three times during Tuesday’s practice, with linebacker Joe Andreessen getting the first one.
“I think everyone knows this is a passing league,” Andreessen said. We “talk about it day in, day out, in defensive unit meetings. The ball is where you make money in this league. So, taking the ball away is a big key in our room – whether it's fumbles or punching the ball out or making plays on the ball in the air.”
Cornerback Christian Benford intercepted Allen on a throw intended for Joshua Palmer on the first play of 11-on-11 drills, safety Darrick Forrest stepped in front of tight end Dalton Kincaid for the third pick.
Andreessen, the Depew native, also had an impressive pass defensed on a throw intended for tight end Dawson Knox.
“We're getting a flood concept. We're getting seven, and it's a hard play, I guess, for the (middle linebacker), but it's a play that we want the MIKE to make here,” he said. “We're trying to push and make a play on it, and, you know, trying to pick it off next time.”
Wide receiver Tyrell Shavers had an up-and-down practice. He wasn’t able to make a contested catch in front of Benford, but later in practice made a nice catch on a throw from backup quarterback Mitchell Trubisky during a hurry-up drill toward the end of practice.
The Bills will be back on the practice field at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday.
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