Inside The Huskies

Ex-Husky Shaq Thompson Moves from Carolina to Buffalo in NFL

The former UW linebacker is trying to extend his career after a pair of season-ending injuries.
Dan Raley|
Then Carolina Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson (7) is shown after breaking his fibula in 2023.
Then Carolina Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson (7) is shown after breaking his fibula in 2023. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Shaq Thompson has been broken and torn in his past two seasons, but he's apparently not done with the NFL.

The former All-America linebacker for the University of Washington has signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills as he attempts to play an 11th pro football season.

The last two years for the Carolina Panthers, his place of employment for a decade, were not kind to him. Thompson appeared in just six games in that time after suffering a broken fibula in 2023 and a torn Achilles tendon last season.

The 6-foot, 230-pound Thompson now turns to a Buffalo franchise that has another former UW player, Edefuan Ulofoshio, in the linebacker mix, plus a former Husky safety in Taylor Rapp in the starting lineup.

Carolina chose not to re-sign him following all of his ongoing health travails and advancing age, and released him on February 24th.

A first-round draft pick in 2015, Thompson played in 123 games and started 112 for the Panthers. He piled up 752 tackles, 12 sacks, 3 interceptions, 4 forced fumbles and 4 fumble recoveries while putting a lot of wear and tear on his body.

Such a talented and versatile athlete from Sacramento, California, who was considered a 5-star recruit, Thompson played linebacker, cornerback, safety and running back for the Huskies. He also had a minor-league baseball stint.

However, he became an NFL institution at linebacker for Carolina, starting immediately after coming to the franchise as the 25th overall pick of the 2015 draft.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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