Shaq Thompson issues 'challenge' to Buffalo Bills' defense in Week 14 vs. Bengals

Shaq Thompson has been a godsend for the Buffalo Bills.

Facing injuries at the linebacker position throughout the season, Thompson has stepped in and not only filled the void, but has done so with flying colors. This past week against the Pittsburgh Steelers was perhaps his finest hour, as he took over as the Bills’ defensive play caller and recorded a team-high nine tackles while helping guide the Buffalo resistance to one of its best performances of the season.

Team leader

After this past Sunday’s win over Pittsburgh, Head Coach Sean McDermott revealed that Thompson had not only led the team on the field against the Steelers, but he had also done so in the days leading up to the conference tilt. On the Friday before the Week 13 matchup, Thompson addressed the Bills’ defense in hopes of spurring the unit to a transformative performance in one of the team’s most critical games of the season.

“I've been challenging this defense to be the best defense for these last now five games,” said Thompson on a recent appearance on One Bills Live. “Let's get the ball back to 17. Get back to that offense, ‘cause once they get going, they get going.

“So, it's how can we be the best defense? How can we be the number one defense and carry this momentum going into the playoffs? It’s a tight race, so every game matters. Every game is a playoff game. I feel like one loss is three losses. That’s just how I feel, and that's just how my mindset is, and it's just every game counts.”

MORE: Bills' defense may have found new leader after win over Steelers

Brick wall

During the win over the Steelers, the Bills allowed just 58 yards rushing, the fewest it has allowed all season. And Thompson was at the forefront of the team’s run-stopping effort.

“That's my job,” said Thompson. “That’s what I go into every game with — that mindset is just try to elevate this defense.”

Regarding the team’s performance against the run, he added, “It's just enough was enough, right? We're tired of getting ran on. We're tired of this defense getting talked about the run defense. Enough is enough.”

Moving forward

Looking ahead, the Bills’ defense will face as daunting a matchup as it will all season when it goes up against quarterback Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals this weekend. In order for Buffalo to find similar success to that which it foundagainst the Steelers, Thompson says it will come down to the team remaining true to its identity.

“It's going to be like the same thing (as against Pittsburgh),” said Thompson. “We got to make sure we tackle, wrap up. But at the end of the day, we got to play our brand of football.”

He added, “We got to go. We got to start stacking wins. Our backs are against the wall.”

With starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard likely remaining out this week due to an elbow injury, it appears as if Thompson is set to get the call once again as the team’s defensive centerpiece. And that could be a boon for the Bills’ defense, which has looked a whole lot better with Thompson at the forefront rather than a reserve role in which he began the season.

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