He was designated to be the Bills alumnus for the leader of the charge for Buffalo's Week 7 game against Tampa Bay. Former Bills receiver Jerry Butler got into Buffalo early last weekend and wanted to stop in and take a look at his old locker in the team's locker room on Saturday. What he found surprised and excited him.
The player now occupying his old locker was another receiver by the name of Deonte Thompson. Butler was more than pleased to see Thompson's name across the top. The former Bills wideout knew Thompson very well.
Butler had just spent the past two years as the Chicago Bears Director of Player Development before announcing his retirement this past January. It was there that he and Thompson established a relationship with Thompson a receiver for those same two seasons for the Bears.
"He's just a good person. He was a guy I could find and talk to. We built a strong relationship in the two years I was there. To be honest we really didn't talk that much football. "We'd talk more about life. He gave me a lot of good advice. Keep going. He knew my situation at the time. He was one guy I could confide in and talk to and he gave me great motivation."
That relationship prompted Butler to text a little more motivation to his former mentee, along with a photo the day before last Sunday's game.
Standing in front of what was now Thompson's locker, Butler posed for a photo, sent it to Thompson with a text that read…
'Good luck tomorrow! This was my old locker! The magic is still in it! JB'
Thompson had just signed the Tuesday prior to last Sunday's matchup with the Buccaneers, but was scheduled to be in the lineup. Upon receiving the text, he remembered that Butler had once mentioned his playing career with the Bills, but the text still caught Thompson off guard.
"He told me one time that he played in Buffalo and was drafted and all," Thompson told Buffalobills.com. "But we never went into details about it. Then he sent me that picture and I didn't even know J.B. was out here last weekend."
All Thompson did last Sunday was post just the second 100-yard receiving day of his career, with a 44-yard catch in the fourth quarter proving instrumental in the Bills 30-27 comeback victory.
"I was trying to find him after the game," said Thompson. "He's a great guy. That's my dude. But I texted him after the game I told him I guess the luck is still in there."
