money Bills’ Brandon Beane: Dorian Williams is a ‘tackling machine’
With the 91st overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft in the third round, the Buffalo Bills added to their pass rush and run defense, selecting linebacker Dorian Williams out of Tulane in the third round.
A player that could thrive at the next level, in time, due to his many talents, Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane said one aspect of his game stands out the most. Williams does the simply things very well.
“He’s a tackle machine, he’s very athletic,” Beane said of the speedy Williams. “We’ll start him outside, we like to make them somewhat interchangeable. This system is more complex than the one he’s coming from. Mentally from a football foundation, he’s got more ground to cover here. Year 1 we’ll probably keep him outside.”
Beane sounds like he has something in mind, after all, it was inside linebacker Tremaine Edmunds who departed in free agency leaving a hole in the Bills starting defense.
Picking Williams adds more speed in the third round, a theme in the wake of Matt Milano’s success that was evident in the selection of fellow linebacker Terrel Bernard in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft. It does strengthen the Bills linebacker rotation and improve their pass rush as well.
It would appear the Bills front office has a type it likes at the position. Like Milano and Bernard, his speed is one of the things that stands out most, as he clocked a 4.49 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.
So while the Edmunds-replacement question remains, the Williams edition is one that could potentially have some immediate impact on the field this season for Buffalo, even if it’s as a backup or rotation player.
Still, it’s not his speed or physical abilities that the linebacker hangs his hat on.
“I feel like I’m a high character guy, for my play on the field I feel like the film speaks for itself, going sideline to sideline, making plays in coverage and getting guys on the ground, and making plays to get the ball back for the offense, and that’s what this is all about,” Williams said.
He’s also excited to play alongside fellow speedy linebacker Matt Milano.
“I love how versatile he is as a player, I love how he uses his hands to get off blocks, I love how he plays sideline to sideline and how he does in coverage as well,” Williams shared about Milano. “I’d love to learn from him.”
