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Bills' rookie Landon Jackson is so huge it looks like he's wearing pads

Buffalo Bills rookie edge rusher Landon Jackson turned heads with his massive frame on Friday.
Mike Moraitis|
Bills defensive edge Landon Jackson.
Bills defensive edge Landon Jackson. | Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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The Buffalo Bills haven't put the pads on yet at training camp, but if we didn't know any better, we would've said they did after seeing a clip of rookie edge rusher Landon Jackson.

Alex Brasky of Bills Digest was in attendance at practice on Friday when he spotted Jackson in a drill and noted just how massive his upper body is.

In fact, he's so big, the third-round pick out of Arkansas looked like he was wearing pads. It truly has to be seen to be believed.

"Landon Jackson's upper body is so massive," Brasky wrote. "Looks like he has shoulder pads on."

Jackson's immense size was no secret coming out of college. His combine measurements had him standing at 6-foot-6 and 264 pounds, but he may have bulked up even more since then.

“They can’t get their arms on you (in the run game),” Jackson explained to Nick Sabato of the Niagara Gazette last month. “It’s easier to sit them down and just not get driven off the ball. And then also in pass rush, you’re really able to just keep them away from you and work a move.”

"He's a big human." Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said of the rookie. "We wanted to make sure there was a size piece to what we were trying to do. He's mature beyond his years. He's a three-down defensive end."

But Jackson isn't just big, he's very athletic, also, and so much so that we can't say for sure he wasn't built in a lab.

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He recorded a 4.68 40-yard dash time and 40.5-inch vertical leap at the NFL Scouting Combine in February, and his 85 Next Gen Stats Athleticism Score ranked second among edge rushers, according to NFL.com.

As big as Jackson is, he was even bigger at one point in college. In his freshman year at LSU, Jackson tipped the scales at 285 pounds before he eventually shaved off 20.

Entering training camp, Jackson is no higher than fourth on the depth chart with Greg Rousseau, Joey Bosa and A.J. Epenesa ahead of him.

That said, none of Bosa (50%), Epenesa (55%) nor Rousseau (71%) play every snap, or even close to every snap, so there should be ample opportunity for Jackson to see the field.

Landon Jackson in drills
Bills defensive edge Landon Jackson cuts inside on edge Joey Bosa during line drills during the second day of Buffalo Bills training camp at St. John Fisher University Thursday, July 24, 2025 in Pittsford. | Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Mike Moraitis
MIKE MORAITIS

Mike Moraitis is a freelance writer who has covered the NFL for major outlets such as Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News. He has previously written for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and FanSided, and got his start in sports media at Bleacher Report.

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