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Bills' Hughes excited about move back to outside linebacker

Tom Szczerbowski / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Buffalo Bills edge-rusher Jerry Hughes will transition from defensive end to outside linebacker in 2016, and it appears he couldn't be more excited about moving back to what he considers his most natural role.

With the Bills moving to a 3-4 defense for this upcoming campaign, Hughes will return to the position he played throughout his time in college and also in his last season with the Indianapolis Colts in 2012.

"It's just going to be a lot more fun at the outside linebacker position now, I would say," said Hughes, according to Chris Brown of the Bills' official site. "I mean, I'm really just not that traditional down-in, down-out defensive end. I’ll be standing up more so just understanding the depths and volumes that it goes into playing a linebacker, I mean it opens up the game for you a lot. You can have a lot more fun I'll say when you're out in coverage, when you’re out coming off the edge, really just playing with that look to kind of just mess with offenses' heads."

While Hughes is apparently more comfortable as a stand-up rusher, his career was revived by the move to defense end when he joined the Bills in 2013.

Initially, he didn't lived up to his draft status after being selected by the Colts in the first round of the 2010 draft, but has racked up 25 sacks in his three seasons in Buffalo, shedding the bust label in the process.

The Bills will need the 27-year-old to continue his production.

With Mario Williams released during the offseason and first-round pick Shaq Lawson set to miss the start of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery, Hughes will be the centerpiece of a Bills' pass rush that's looking to rebound from a disappointing 2015 campaign.

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