Bills Central

Big decision on Bills marquee defensive player looming

The Buffalo Bills have a big decision looming on a defensive staple in the next few weeks.

Kevin Massare

Bills DE Von Miller
Bills DE Von Miller / Getty Images
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In a significant development for fans of the Buffalo Bills, discussions are ongoing regarding key decisions that may impact the team's future. Notably, defensive standout Von Miller's situation has garnered considerable attention, with implications that could influence the roster and overall team dynamics.

The Bills' management is weighing various factors, including performance metrics, injury histories, suspensions, and his remaining contract. Decisions made in the coming weeks could not only affect Miller's role but also shape the Bills' strategy for the upcoming season.

Miller is not owed any more guaranteed money in his contract but will still carry $15.5m in dead space, which the Bills will have to pay if they release him. He is 1 sack against the New England Patriots away from earning a $4M bonus.

If he ends the season with 5 sacks as he has now, he will only earn $2.5m. Meaning one sack can earn Miller, $1.5M more. That bonus must be counted on the 2025 salary cap. He has been having a fairly productive season after missing 4 games for his suspension against the NFL's personal conduct policy. He has not only recorded 5 sacks, he has also recorded 31 pressures.

Miller who is going to be 36, is owed $17.1M in base salary this upcoming season. It's safe to say that GM Brandon Beane will try to negotiate that into a more team-friendly deal that models performance as it did this year. The belief is that Miller may be interested in one more final year, and the Bills will hold the cards to make it happen. Right now, they would save $8.5M by cutting him but could leverage the $15.5m in dead cap space to keep him around for one more year.

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Kevin Massare
KEVIN MASSARE

Kevin has spent over a decade covering, writing, and podcasting about the Bills. He has experience working with multiple networks and has a deep-rooted history within the Bills community. His opinion-based commentary is accompanied by a data and analytics-based approach. You can commonly find him talking about playoff scenarios and playoff seeding projections.