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From the moment Tremaine Edmunds left in free agency this offseason, the question of who would take over as middle linebacker had dogged the Buffalo Bills.
Edmunds’ replacement has been discussed ad nauseam since March, why is when Bills head coach Sean McDermott expressed “concern” over the position nearly halfway through the preseason, it sparked serious frustration from fans and analysts.
In the spring, Buffalo re-signed both A.J. Klein and Tyrel Dodson to one-year deals and drafted Dorian Williams in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. They joined Terrel Bernard, the Bills third-rounder from the 2022 NFL draft, and 2022 seventh-rounder, Baylon Spector, in competing for the starting mike position.
Bernard is currently out of the running after suffering a hamstring injury last week, and McDermott admitted to reporters on Thursday, August 17, that he’s not entirely impressed by what he’s seeing thus far.
“I think there’s room for improvement quite honestly,” McDermott said. “We’ve gotta do a better job with leading the defense. We gotta do a better job with communication, execution, so that’s an area of concern right now.”
When asked if there’s a specific issue, McDermott said it’s the overall package. “It’s the total job description,” he explained. “Running a defense, leading the defense, standing in front of the huddle, communicating the defense. So, it all goes together. It’s all connected.”
Bills Mafia couldn’t help but feel triggered after seeing McDermott’s statement shared on X, formerly known as Twitter. “If only they had a long off-season to address that issue,” one fan commented, while TSN Football Insider Dave Naylor simply wrote, “!!!”
Another fan posted, “Well why didn’t you bring in better competition. We all saw it and knew it was a major hole!” while Buffalo Rumblings‘ J. Spence wrote, “I am really hoping we don’t miss Tremaine Edmunds this year.”
Bills Coach Says Tyrel Dodson Is Struggling With ‘Growing Pains’ as a Starter
Following the Bills preseason win over the Indianapolis Colts, The Athletic‘s Joe Buscaglia noted how the MLB competition has greatly shifted since the start of training camp, calling the days Spector was taking first-team reps “a distant memory,” while noting “Dodson should be viewed as the favorite to start unless Bernard gets back in short order.”
With 25 days to go before the regular season opener, it’s still Dodson’s role to lose. However, the former undrafted linebacker out of Texas A&M, who’s played for Buffalo since 2019 in mostly a reserve role, has struggled to keep his cool in practice. While training camp fights are common, the 25-year-old’s involvement in a scuffle on Tuesday, during which he swung his helmet around, had quarterback Josh Allen irate.
“Emotions get involved even in practice, but I remain fully confident in T-dot,” McDermott said when asked if Dodson’s discipline was a concern. “There’s growing pains along the way. And you have to be able to control your emotions at the same time. You can only so far, you line up, and you come back and you win the next play. So, I think he’ll learn from those.”
As for Klein, 31, who moved up on the depth chart over Spector, McDermott said he has a lot of “trust and faith” in him, as well. “He leads. He communicates well. He knows what we wanna get done and I think those are three important areas to basically be the coach on the field that we need. He’s mature. He’s been around the NFL and this defense for quite sometime.”
Klein is entering his 11th year in the NFL, and previously played for the Bills during the 2020 and 2021 NFL seasons. When he was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL draft, McDermott was the team’s defensive coordinator.
Could Dorian Williams Step Up as Middle Linebacker?
After seeing McDermott’s comments, CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso wrote, “Dorian Williams needs some reps with Milano in the preseason,” while a fan posted, “It’s mind boggling they didn’t see this coming and weren’t more aggressive to be ready at this position. I also wish Dorian Williams was getting a look here.”
A fan asked Trapasso, “If they did decide to put Dorian into the MLB spot does that mean he gets the green dot or do you think they give it to someone else like Poyer?” and he responded, “That dilemma is probably what’s holding Dorian back at this point.”
Williams, who had a career-high 132 total tackles, five sacks, two interceptions, seven passes defended, and two forced fumbles during his final season at Tulane, flip-flopped between being used as a middle and outside linebacker this offseason.
After the rookie recorded seven total tackles (six solo) during the Bills preseason opener, RotoWire surmised, “The third-round rookie is no longer in the running for the open starting middle linebacker spot, but he has a chance to earn a meaningful role on the outside. Stud defender Matt Milano will man one of those spots on a full-time basis, but there’s a role for Williams, even if it’s as part of a rotation on the other side. Expect him to see a decent amount of action in the team’s last two preseason games.”
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