In the last installment of this series, we covered the defensive line — Ed Oliver’s every-down workload and the battle behind Deone Walker on the Buffalo Bills’ roster. Now we move to the second level of Jim Leonhard’s new 3-4 system, where two rookies have real runways to snaps and Terrel Bernard’s own health might end up deciding who plays where.
Kaleb Elarms-Orr is fighting for a starting job and auditioning as Buffalo’s answer at Bernard’s own spot if things go wrong. T.J. Parker’s path isn’t
as open, but it isn’t closed either. As training camp opens today, we dive into the linebackers — a group that bears watching throughout the rest of summer.
Bills’ LB depth chart entering camp
- Inside Linebacker: Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, Kaleb Elarms-Orr, Joe Andreessen, Keonta Jenkins, Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, Theron Gaines, Jimmy Ciarlo
- Outside Linebacker (EDGE): Greg Rousseau, Bradley Chubb, T.J. Parker, Michael Hoecht, Javon Solomon, Mike Danna, Andre Jones Jr., Cade Denhoff
Inside Linebacker: Kaleb Elarms-Orr vs. Dorian Williams
This is the battle to watch all camp, and it’s a two-layered one. On the surface, it’s about who starts next to Bernard. Beyond that, it could be about who becomes Buffalo’s answer at Bernard’s own spot if his health issues continue trending the wrong way. Elarms-Orr has impressed the coaching staff from the moment he arrived, has said openly that he’s targeting the starting job from day one, and has already gotten first-team looks during minicamps — opportunities that exist in large part because Williams’ injury opened that door for him. I believe he has everything needed to win this outright as a rookie.
But Williams isn’t handing this over easy. He brings traits that fit what Leonhard wants defensively, and a healthy Williams is a real problem for a rookie trying to take his job. Either way, this camp carries double duty for Elarms-Orr: he’s competing to start now, and effectively auditioning to be the answer at Bernard’s spot too if the captain’s body doesn’t cooperate. That dual-stakes situation is exactly why I have this at the top of my watch list all camp.
The Terrel Bernard Factor
Speaking of Bernard, the talent was never the question. Health is. Bernard has put together genuinely elite stretches before — in 2023 and 2024 he was playing at as high a level as any linebacker in the NFL — but he’s also spent long chunks of recent seasons playing through injuries and taking on blockers in space with little help clearing a path in front of him.
Does Leonhard’s scheme actually change that? Does it let him play cleaner and finally stay on the field for a full season? Or do we watch the same pattern repeat, with Bernard doing more than his share of the dirty work because the players ahead of him aren’t doing theirs? Scheme fit can only do so much here — a lot of this still comes down to luck. It’s exactly why Elarms-Orr’s camp matters as much as it does for the rookie.
Joe Andreessen is the presumptive first man off the bench right now when thinking green dot, but “presumptive” is doing a lot of work in that sentence. He still has to prove it in these same camp battles. Keonta Jenkins, Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, Theron Gaines, and even Jimmy Ciarlo (more of a special-teams piece than a defensive one), are all fighting to show enough in hopes of earning a depth spot, or, for some of them, just a practice squad look.
If Bernard can’t stay on the field and this Williams-Elarms-Orr battle doesn’t produce someone ready to step up and hold the job, I wouldn’t rule out Buffalo circling back to Matt Milano or Shaq Thompson on a short-term, hole-filling deal. Neither has retired, and neither has signed elsewhere. That’s not the plan right now — it’s the contingency if the plan doesn’t work.
Cuts here: I’d expect just four ILBs making the team, with a couple of them (at least) being carried on the practice squad. Right now I’d keep Jenkins on the 53. Andreesen, Jenkins, Flannigan-Fowles, and Gaines fight for this last spot, and also with Ciarlo for a practice squad spot.
Positional battle interest level: High
Outside Linebacker: The starters and T.J. Parker’s real opportunity
There isn’t much debate on paper here. Rousseau and Chubb should be the undisputed starters at outside linebacker in this 3-4, full stop. The question is durability, not talent.
The rookie clearly isn’t walking into a starting job — Chubb is genuinely better than he gets credit for right now, in my opinion, and he’s not losing his spot to a rookie based on merit alone. But Chubb also comes with his own physical questions, and that’s where Parker’s real opening lives. If Chubb deals with anything physically this season, I could see Parker not just stepping into snaps but out-snapping the starter across from him. That’s a real possibility, as long as he’s ready, even without a clean path to a Week 1 starting job.
The rotation behind starting OLBs
Michael Hoecht, working his way back from a torn Achilles, is the other complementary piece I expect the Bills to lean on, alongside Parker. That’s the quartet I think Buffalo trusts to generate pressure off the edge in 2026: Rousseau, Chubb, Parker, and Hoecht. He seems to be closer to his return than people believe, but if he really needs more time, there are some options.
Javon Solomon is fighting to establish his value in a scheme that fits his style better than the old one did, and he’s someone who could push for real snaps if he shows well early. Mike Danna is the steadying veteran presence here — extremely experienced, and he sets a real floor for this group. If the Bills chose the conservative route with Hoecht, he’s a lock to make the team.
Andre Jones Jr. and Cade Denhoff round out the group. I’m not expecting much beyond them showing enough effort to make a case for a practice squad spot, but the top four in this room feels well settled and unlikely to change much between now and Week 1.
Cuts here: Jones Jr. and Denhoff are the ones I’d flag as the longest shots to make the initial 53, more likely candidates for the practice squad if either sticks around at all. Solomon has to show more or his spot on the 53-man roster could be in danger.
Positional battle interest level: Medium
Final Thoughts
Two rookies, two very different runways. Elarms-Orr’s path to real snaps is wide open — he can win a starting job outright and double as Buffalo’s insurance policy at Bernard’s spot in the same camp. Parker’s path is narrower on paper, but Chubb’s own durability questions mean the opportunity is still there if things break right. Bernard can still be the engine of this defense when healthy — the real question is whether he stays that way, and whether Leonhard’s scheme gives him the help he hasn’t always had.
Catch up on the series:
Catch up on all this and more with the latest edition of Leading the Charge!
