Jan 26, 2025; Kansas City, MO, USA; Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott against the Kansas City Chiefs during the AFC Championship Game Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Bills' newest linebacker pays ultimate compliment to head coach Sean McDermott

Originally posted on Buffalo Bills on SI
By Ralph Ventre | Last updated Jun 12, 2025 11:56 AM ET

Veteran linebacker Shaq Thompson is new to the building, but not the environment.

The Buffalo Bills signed Thompson earlier in the week, and the 31-year-old went right to work at minicamp. His acclimation period is likely to end quickly due to his familiarity with Bills' head coach Sean McDermott.

Thompson, a 2015 first-round draft pick, had spent his entire career with the Carolina Panthers up until this point, but, notably, his first two NFL seasons were under defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, who left to take the Bills' job in 2017.

Nine years later, the teacher and pupil are reunited in Orchard Park.

“This is the defense I grew up in," said Thompson. "This is the defense in 2015, when I got drafted, this is the defense that I had to learn, so the biggest thing is just terminology for me."

The hope is that Thompson, who has played only six total games over the past two seasons due to injuries, can rediscover the form that led to four consecutive 100+ tackle seasons. It's unlikely that he'll have the chance to be an every-down contributor, but his versatility adds another element to McDermott's scheme.

“He's been through some injuries over the course of the last few years, so that's been hard to watch from a distance. The latest one we're working through, as I mentioned earlier, with him now," said McDermott. "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.”

As one would assume, Thompson also shared a high opinion of the Bills' ninth-year head coach.

“Coach Sean McDermott is one of those guys that you just want to run through a wall for, you know. He always has the energy. He's always positive," said Thompson.

If the Bills were to take a flier on an aging linebacker as a potential insurance policy doubling as a locker room presence, Thompson seems to be a logical choice.