Buffalo Bills Coach Eric Washington Defends Von Miller Despite Struggles: 'A Lot of Heart'

Despite Buffalo Bills edge rusher Von Miller returning from his ACL tear, he's yet to make an impact. Assistant coach Eric Washington revealed why he's optimistic that will change.

If the Buffalo Bills are going to end up in the playoffs, their beleaguered defense will have to improve. The injuries to linebacker Matt Milano, tackle DaQuan Jones, and cornerback Tre’Davious White, among others, have demanded Buffalo’s depth to step up. That responsibility, largely, has not been met.

Those issues have only been exacerbated by the non-factor that is edge rusher Von Miller. The 34-year-old veteran returned from an ACL tear in October but has accounted for just two tackles and a quarterback hit across eight games.

Miller was never going to be the All-World edge rusher of his prime, nor should the Bills have expected him to be, but his ramp-up has been significantly less productive than even pessimistic fans would have anticipated.

Von Miller gets off the line of scrimmage against the New York Giants / © Jamie Germano, Democrat and Chronicle

Bills assistant head coach (and defensive line coach) Eric Washington supported the recently extended (six-year, $120 million) edge rusher on Tuesday.

“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. “Von didn’t wait until he was in an optimal position as far as what he’s used to doing.”

That respect isn’t misplaced. To return as quickly as he had, at a time when Buffalo needed reinforcements, is admirable. He wasn’t expected to be a quality option out of the gate, either. Even so, things have been murky at best.

Per Pro Football Focus, Miller ranks 81st out of 109 edge rushers with at least 100 pass-rush snaps in pass pass-rush win rate (7.8 percent). He hasn’t been in position to make plays and a missed tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals iced a crucial loss. Notably, he is without a sack in 2023.

Simply put, posting shutouts in the box score isn’t going to help the Bills make the Wild Card. According to Washington, there’s reason for optimism despite the lack of production.

“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.”

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At 6-6, Buffalo enters the bye week as an outsider to the AFC playoff picture. With star quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott, and Justin Herbert left on the schedule, the home stretch will be even more pressing for Miller. The Bills’ pass rush has been adequate without his contributions, but it’ll take a dominant effort to compensate for the back seven’s inconsistencies.

If anything else, the Week 13 bye should offer Miller the necessary time to recuperate before he helps fight for Buffalo’s playoff life.