Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles of the New York Giants during the game against the Green Bay Packers
The Buffalo Bills are shifting defenses, and with that shift comes a shift in responsibility for the players on the roster. Buffalo is likely to be more multiple in their fronts, even if they are a 3-4 defense in name, and they are likely to have their linebackers, in particular, playing a totally different style than they did under the previous regime.
Does that mean that holdovers from the Sean McDermott era have less opportunity to succeed with new defensive boss Jim Leonhard in town? Does it mean that any newcomers have an upper hand? Fortunately, we’re inching ever closer to training camp where we can start to answer some of these questions.
In today’s installment of “91 players in 91 days,” we discuss a veteran linebacker looking to make the roster this summer.
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Height/Weight: 6’2″, 223 pounds
Experience/Draft: 7; signed with the San Francisco 49ers following the 2019 NFL Draft
Acquired: Signed with Buffalo on 5/27/2026
Financial situation (per Spotrac): Flannigan-Fowles signed a one-year deal worth $1.215 million, all of which is base salary. Given that there are no guarantees on the contract, Buffalo can release him prior to Week 1 without any dead-cap charge; however, since Flannigan-Fowles is a fully vested veteran, that entire base salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s on Buffalo’s 53-man roster for the first week of the season. His cap hit is just $1.075 million thanks to the veteran salary benefit.
2025 Recap: Flannigan-Fowles left the organization that signed him as a UDFA, joining the New York Giants on a one-year deal. He started three games, which tied a career-high, though he played in a career-low 10 games thanks to a variety of injuries. He missed Weeks 2 and 3 thanks to a calf strain, then he didn’t play in Weeks 5, 6, or 7 as he dealt with a hamstring strain. He also missed time due to a neck injury and a knee injury, and he also dealt with a pectoral injury.
Despite all that, he played a career-high 226 defensive snaps in addition to 106 special teams snaps. He had a career-high 33 tackles, and he also notched his second career sack. In the five games where Flannigan-Fowles played at least 40% of the Giants’ defensive snaps, he totaled 29 tackles, a pass breakup, and a sack.
Positional outlook: Flannigan-Fowles is one of seven players listed at inside linebacker on the current roster. Joe Andreessen, Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, Keonta Jenkins, Jimmy Ciarlo, and Theron Gaines are the others. Kaleb Elams-Orr is listed at linebacker, but he is expected to play inside linebacker.
2026 Offseason: Flannigan-Fowles missed time during offseason work due to a lingering knee issue, but he is expected to be ready to go for training camp.
2026 Season outlook: The former collegiate defensive back has proven himself to be a solid special teams player who can fill in on defense, but his extensive injury history combined with his below-average size and athleticism should give the Bills pause when considering him for the final roster. Buffalo is shifting to a new defense, and they do need to replace plenty of snaps on special teams given the loss of fullback Reggie Gilliam. However, looking at the linebacker group the Bills have assembled, it’s hard to find a guaranteed spot for Flannigan-Fowles this season.
Bernard, Andreessen, Williams, and Elams-Orr feel like locks on the 53-man roster. How many other linebackers will the Bills carry? The numbers game is where Flannigan-Fowles is going to face his biggest test, as he’ll be squaring off against three younger players who are more athletic — and, thus far, more durable — than he is. Ciarlo and Jenkins have been with the Bills for all or part of the last calendar year, and while that may carry less weight now that a new defensive coaching staff is in town, it’s still the same front office that originally brought them in. Gaines was added following the 2026 NFL Draft as a rookie free agent, so even he has been with the team for a hair longer than Flannigan-Fowles has.
A lot of what happens with Flannigan-Fowles will come down to health and numbers. Do the Bills think that he can stay healthy enough to help on defense when called upon? Do they like him enough to fully guarantee his salary? Would they rather roll the dice on a younger player with more athleticism, or someone who has experience playing multiple linebacker spots at the pro level? The last linebacker spot or two will be hotly contested this summer, and while Flannigan-Fowles will be in the thick of it, I would rather see the Bills keep someone like Ciarlo around over the soon-to-be 30-year old.
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