Von Miller is making a guarantee about his return to the Buffalo Bills next season.
The All-Pro edge rusher saw his first season in Buffalo cut short after suffering a torn ACL in the team’s Thanksgiving Day win over the Detroit Lions. Though Miller initially had optimism that he might be able to return during the season, he ultimately underwent season-ending surgery and has been working his way through a long rehab process.
Though Miller’s exact return date remains undetermined, he made assurances at team OTAs on May 23 that he would be back before the midway point of the season.
Von Miller’s “Guarantee” on Return
Speaking to reporters at the start of OTAs on Tuesday, Miller expressed optimism that he might be ready in time for the season opener against the New York Jets. Miller was then asked whether he thought he would definitely be back for Week 6, and Miller said it would be a worst-case scenario to miss that much time.
“I guarantee it won’t be any later than that,” Miller said.
Miller has already expressed some optimism about his return to the team, saying in February that he was confident he would be back and the Bills would finally break through to win the Super Bowl.
“I hope — I don’t even like saying hope — I know we’ll be back,” Miller said in an episode of his podcast broadcast in the lead-up to the Super Bowl. “We’ve just got to keep going. Plus the NFL script says the Buffalo Bills are going to win it next year.”
Miller added that he was already starting to regain strength and working on the mental aspects of working his way through a major injury.
“I feel like I will be ready for next season,” Miller said, adding, “I feel really, really good. I think it’s going as good as it can go. The body’s going to do what it’s going to do. I think mentally is the thing you’ve got to focus on and I feel like I’m in a great place mentally.”
Von Miller Keeping Busy in Offseason
While he has been working his way through rehab — and sharing some highlights with fans on social media — Miller has also remained heavily involved with the team. He was in attendance at options workouts last month and back for voluntary OTAs this week. Miller has also been shadowing Bills general manager Brandon Beane, learning the ropes in the hopes of becoming a GM one day himself.
Von Miller is recovering from an ACL injury. But he’s still at voluntary workouts in Orchard Park #BillsMafia @WKBW
Miller tagged along with Beane at the NFL Scouting Combine, helping to evaluate players and sharing his insights with the Bills general manager.
“He had his list of questions, and they were well crafted and just going beyond obvious surface-level GM questions,” Beane said, via SI.com’s Bills Central. “… I know if he’s gonna take the time to do that, and he’s taking notes while he is talking to me, that showed me … It’s easy to have a five-minute conversation or a 10-minute, but it was two-plus hours on a Saturday, so, I knew he was dead serious about doing it.”
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Bills’ Von Miller Makes Strong Statement on Return From ACL Injury