Bills DC glows over underrated LB: 'This guy's just got it'

Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich was not surprised by linebacker Terrel Bernard's breakout in the 2023 season.

Kyle Silagyi | Jun 28, 2024

Sep 24, 2023; Landover, Maryland, USA; Buffalo Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard (43) celebrates with teammates after recovering a fumble against the Washington Commanders during the second half at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

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Much of the football discourse unfolding in Western New York at this time a year ago centered around the middle linebacker position, particularly the Buffalo Bills’ succession plan following the departure of former first-round pick Tremaine Edmunds. The consistent, though perhaps under-impactful defender inked a four-year, $72 million deal with the Chicago Bears in the offseason, leaving a glaring hole in the middle of Buffalo’s perennially stout defense.

The Bills—perhaps surprisingly—didn’t add any marquee names to fill the void left by the two-time Pro Bowler. The team instead opted to look internally for its successor, allowing veteran A.J. Klein, former undrafted player Tyrel Dodson, and recent third-round pick Terrel Bernard to compete for the starting role. It was a competition that justifiably gave Buffalo fans pause—competing to fill a former Pro Bowler’s vacancy were a veteran journeyman, a career special-teamer, and an undersized recent day-two pick.

In hindsight, it was a funny concern.

Bernard took an early lead in the battle and didn’t look back, maintaining his hold on the role even after suffering a summer hamstring injury. Though fans weren’t overwhelmingly confident in the former Baylor Bear entering the 2023 campaign, he made an immediate impact, notching two interceptions and two sacks over the first three games of the season. He finished his breakout sophomore effort with 143 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, five pass deflections, three fumble recoveries, and three interceptions—a stellar campaign from any player, let alone an individual whom fans were (justifiably) leery of entering the season.

Oct 1, 2023; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard warms up before a game against the Miami Dolphins at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports / Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

His production came as a shock to some, but not to those who frequent One Bills Drive. New Buffalo defensive coordinator Bobby Babich—who was Bernard’s position coach before his 2024 promotion—recently spoke about the linebacker’s breakout, praising the young defender during an appearance on former Bills center Eric Wood’s Centered on Buffalo podcast.

“I think everybody sees that Terrel is not the biggest guy,” Babich said. “He’s not the longest guy, he’s not the fastest guy. I won’t say he’s not the strongest guy, because on the field, he plays bigger than his actual size. To say it happened as fast as it happened, yeah, maybe that was a surprise, but when you really go back and watch his Baylor tape, he was doing all of these types of things at Baylor. When I was doing an evaluation on him, he was in the Big 12 doing this. It’s not like he’s at, I’ll say my alma mater, North Dakota State, where you’re like, ‘you know, FCS school, I don’t know if it’ll translate, this, that, and the other.’

“That leads into, you can get around a guy in this league, I get into interviews with him, and I’m like, ‘This guy’s just got it.’ The six-foot guy who’s not north of 230 pounds and is not what the prototypical linebacker looks like, but guy makes plays. It is what it is. The expectation that we set was he would be that type of player. He took it, ran with it.”

Bernard’s breakout went largely unnoticed by national outlets and pundits, as his stat line—which was more than worthy of Pro Bowl or All-Pro consideration—went completely unhonored. This positions him as a potential ‘breakout’ player entering the 2024 campaign despite his already demonstrated borderline-elite play; again playing alongside a healthy Matt Milano, expect more of the same from Bernard this fall.

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