The Buffalo Bills defense has one of the best pass rushes in the NFL. They are ranked first in quarterback knockdowns, second in sacks, and second in pressures.
They are doing this with one of their best pass rushers on a pitch count this season. Buffalo is being cautious with their star EDGE rusher and avoiding the risk of injury.
The Buffalo Bills newcomer had a great start to his tenure in Buffalo
Miller started in the first 11 games, recording eight sacks, ten tackles for loss, 12 quarterback hits, and 27 pressures.
An injury on Thanksgiving ended his season
Miller exited their Thanksgiving game against the Detroit Lions with a knee injury and was expected to be out for at least 2-4 weeks.
Buffalo placed him on injured reserve on December 1. He underwent exploratory surgery on his knee, and the doctors found out that he suffered a season-ending torn ACL.
Who stepped up for the injured Miller?
Greg Rousseau, A.J. Epenesa, and Shaq Lawson stepped up for the injured Miller.
Rousseau finished the season with eight sacks, ten tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hits, and 18 pressures.
Epenesa finished the season with 6.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss, ten quarterback hits, and 14 pressures.
Lawson finished the season with 3.5 sacks, six tackles for loss, nine quarterback hits, and 11 pressures.
How did the pass rush do overall without Miller?
The pass rush wasn’t as good with Miller out of the lineup. Buffalo finished the season with 40 sacks, 142 pressures, and 56 quarterback knockdowns. They were 14th in sacks, 13 in pressures, and 12th in quarterback knockdowns.
Buffalo had four sacks against Miami in the Wild Card and one against Cincinnati in the Divisional.
How did Buffalo approach the offseason?
Buffalo approached the offseason with the plan of not rushing Von Miller’s injury. They signed veteran pass rusher Leonard Floyd to a 1-year deal worth up to $9 million.
Miller started the season on the PUP List
Miller started the 2023 season on the PUP List and missed the first four games. They activated him on October 1.
He has seen limited action in the eight games he’s been active. He has two tackles, one quarterback hit, and three pressures. He has only played in 26% of snaps.
Here’s what head coach Sean McDermott had to say about his approach to playing Miller:
“You never want to push a player. It was a little bit of a different situation. The guys have done such a good job to this point.”
Since the pass rush is doing a good job with Miller on a short leash, they don’t have to worry about him being overworked. Miller doesn’t have an issue seeing limited action:
“Everybody in there is doing a really good job of rushing the quarterback. It’s a really, really talented room. We’ve been highly motivated this season to go in there and get the job done.”
What to expect for the rest of the season?
Expect Von Miller to gradually increase his snap counts for the remainder of the season. Once he gets healthier and more comfortable, he will be back to his old self in sacking the quarterback.
Hopefully, Miller doesn’t have any setbacks and can stay healthy for the rest of the season.
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