Getty Bills linebacker Matt Milano #58 warms up prior to a game at Highmark Stadium on December 17, 2022.
The Buffalo Bills could be without All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano for the majority of the season after he suffered his second major injury in less than a year.
Milano had been forced out of the team’s practice on August 14 after suffering an arm injury, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on August 15 that he had a torn bicep. As Schefter reported, the injury could keep Milano out until late in the regular season.
“ESPN sources: Bills Pro-Bowl linebacker Matt Milano, who left Tuesday’s practice injured, tore his bicep and now will be out indefinitely,” Schefter wrote in a post on X. “Milano will undergo surgery on his torn bicep with the hope of trying to return later this season, possibly in December.”
Bills head coach Sean McDermott shared a more detailed update, saying he feels for Milano and his family but is confident the linebacker can come back.
Bills Coach Shares Praise for Matt Milano’s Resiliency
Milano was still returning from a leg fracture that cut short his 2023 season, which the team described as a complicated injury that caused other damage and led to a long recovery process. Though Milano was able to take the field with teammates at training camp, the team had held him out of the first preseason game on August 10.
ESPN sources: Bills Pro-Bowl linebacker Matt Milano, who left Tuesday’s practice injured, tore his bicep and now will be out indefinitely. Milano will undergo surgery on his torn bicep with the hope of trying to return later this season, possibly in December.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, McDermott said he was confident that Milano could make it through the latest setback.
“It’s an unfortunate situation, right,” McDermott said. “Matt’s a strong young man. I know he’s going to handle this. Certainly tough, especially coming off of the year he came off of already.
“The good thing is he’s got a good family behind him that are going to support him, teammates that are going to support him as well as the coaching staff and our entire football organization. He’s resilient. We’ve got to be resilient. We’ve got to move forward and be focused on solutions.”
McDermott, who had already offered praise from Milano and the work he had been doing to recover from last year’s injury, said he had faith that the All-Pro linebacker would be able to return.
Milano was in the midst of a strong season when he was injured last year. He made 30 total tackles and two interceptions through the first five games in 2023.
“When you know the person, you know that this is not going to beat or keep Matt Milano down,” McDermott said. “Obviously, this period in time right now has been tough for him, for all of us, but in particular for him and his family, he knows all the work that he put in. No one knows the work that Matt put in to get himself back to where he was before this recent injury. So, that’s probably one of the harder … pills to swallow.”
Bills Hit With More Injuries
The Bills have suffered other injuries through training camp and the start of the preseason. Veteran wide receiver Chase Claypool was placed on injured reserve, which could bring an end to his season, and backup quarterback Shane Buechele suffered a neck injury.
The Bills made a few moves to fill the void, signing veteran wide receiver Damiere Byrd and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Ben DiNucci.
Comments