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Von Miller was able to beat the odds and return from an ACL tear after close to 10 months, but the Buffalo Bills edge rusher is still waiting to return to his previous form.
Miller returned to the field in October after tearing his ACL on Thanksgiving Day last year, but has not made a significant impact for Buffalo’s injury-struck defense. Miller has made just two tackles and one quarterback hit over his eight games this season, frequently struggling to beat opposing linemen and put pressure on the quarterback.
Though the Bills have faced criticism for keeping Miller on the field, Bills assistant head coach and defensive line coach Eric Washington defended the 34-year-old and expressed optimism that he could still turn it around and contribute this season.
Von Miller’s ‘Mental Toughness’ Earns Praise
Washington pushed aside criticism of the All-Pro edge rusher, saying Miller has shown a lot of grit in returning to the field and pushing to improve this season. He added that Miller came back to the field as soon as he could, even though rehab for a torn ACL can often take a full year or more.
“I see a determined veteran who’s working every day under circumstances that none of us could identify with … I see a veteran that has shown a lot of toughness, mental toughness, a lot of heart, and a lot of leadership, and really a lot of sacrifice,” Washington said, via SI.com. “Von didn’t wait until he was in an optimal position as far as what he’s used to doing.”
Though Miller’s contributions aren’t showing on the stat sheet just yet, Washington added that he’s starting to see signs of the All-Pro the Bills signed to a $120 million contract.
“A couple of weeks ago Von had a really sharp inside spin move, the same move that he used a year ago against Kansas City, to get the quarterback down,” Washington said. “That move came back for him, it was quick, it was sharp … He complemented that with a strong stab outside rush that was right in the quarterback’s face, and again the ball was out.
“So I’m seeing those things, those things won’t show up in the scores column, they won’t show up on the highlight reels, but … those things are extremely positive.”
Insider Called on Bills to Bench Von Miller
While Washington may be in his corner, Miller has started to take increasing criticism from outside the organization. Sal Maiorana of the Democrat & Chronicle wrote that the Bills must consider benching Miller and giving his snaps to one of the team’s younger edge rushers.
“I’ve made this point several times already, but I’ll make it again: No matter what Miller says in his never-ending quest to be positive and upbeat, he was not ready to return to action,” Maiorana wrote. “He wasn’t ready in Week 5 when he debuted against the Jaguars, and he’s not ready six games later, only now we have six games of clear-cut data to prove the point.”
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