The Bills’ defense is changing fast, and Dorian Williams looks like one of the players best positioned to ride that wave.
Buffalo has moved away from Sean McDermott’s read-and-react approach and into a more aggressive system under former safety Jim Leonhard. That kind of switch can rattle a roster built for something else.
It can also uncover a player who fits just fine no matter what the scheme asks for. Williams has that chance.
The 25-year-old inside linebacker is wearing No. 42 and is listed at 6-foot-1, 228 pounds. He was Buffalo’s third-round pick in 2023, taken No. 91 overall out of Tulane.
This is the final year of his rookie deal, and if he makes the 53-man roster, he’ll count $3,902,692 against the cap. If the Bills move on, the dead cap charge would be $258,692.
Last season, Williams was back in a reserve role after spending much of the prior year stepping in as a starter for Matt Milano. But Buffalo leaned more heavily on a third linebacker in heavy personnel, which pushed Williams onto the field more often than his rookie season had. He also filled in when Milano and Terrel Bernard were hurt.
In 16 games with 11 starts, Williams missed the loss to the New England Patriots because of a knee injury. He was a major piece on special teams, playing 63% of those snaps and finishing with 15 tackles there, tied for 31st in the NFL.
On defense, he logged 47% of Buffalo’s snaps. His stat line included 63 total tackles, three QB hits, one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery and two pass breakups, good for fifth on the team in tackles.
His playoff run was short. Williams made three tackles in two games, then suffered a neck injury on the first play of Buffalo’s 33-30 overtime loss to the Denver Broncos while making the tackle on the opening kickoff. In effect, he played one game and one snap in the postseason.
The summer has brought a fresh test, and Williams has answered it well so far. He’s recovered from bilateral knee fractures suffered during minicamp and has mostly been running with the first team.
He started Buffalo’s preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers and finished second on the team with three tackles. In that game, he lined up as the weakside player next to Terrel Bernard at MIKE, and he also worked as the MIKE with Keonta Jenkins at WLB.
Buffalo’s linebacker room is crowded enough to keep this interesting. Williams is one of six healthy inside linebackers on the roster, alongside Bernard, Joe Andreessen, Keonta Jenkins, Jimmy Ciarlo and Theron Gaines.
Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles is also an inside linebacker, but he’s on injured reserve. Rookie Kaleb Elarms-Orr is listed at linebacker, though he functions as an ILB in this defense.
The competition is real, but Williams has the edge for now. Elarms-Orr has shown well in practice, yet he still has work to do, especially in coverage. Leonhard will likely mix and match his top linebackers based on situation, but Williams should remain a major part of the plan.
And there’s a clear reason for that: he’s kept getting better. Early in his career, Williams was all about speed and violence against the run, while coverage lagged behind. That part of his game still has room to grow, but he was steadier there last season.
During his breakout 2024 season, Pro Football Reference credited him with allowing 73% of the passes thrown his way to be completed, 43 of 59, for 390 yards and three touchdowns. Opposing quarterbacks posted a 107.3 rating when Williams was the closest defender in coverage.
Last season, those numbers improved in one key area. He allowed only 52.6% completions, 10 of 19, for 96 yards, though the QB rating was still 102.1 and he gave up two touchdowns.
Whether that progress turns into a new contract in Buffalo is unclear. What does seem clear is that Williams is lined up to play plenty on defense and on special teams in 2026.
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