Bills open practice window for former All-Pro LB Matt Milano

Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano is set to return to practice after tearing his bicep in the offseason.

Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Buffalo Bills are opening the 21-day practice window of former All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano, head coach Sean McDermott announced Monday afternoon. The 30-year-old can now return to practice; Buffalo now has until December 4 to either activate him to the 53-man roster or revert him to season-long injured reserve.

“We’ll open up Matt’s window starting this week,” McDermott told reporters. “He will not play in the game [this weekend], but we’ll open up his practice window this week.”

Milano has spent the first 10 games of the 2024 campaign on the Bills’ injured reserve list after tearing his bicep during a mid-August training camp practice. Though he was announced to be out “indefinitely” upon his initial diagnosis, Buffalo’s brass has long expressed optimism that Milano would be able to return at some point this season, with McDermot reiterating the stalwart defender’s timeline in late October.

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It’s been some time since Bills fans have seen Milano play live reps, as he missed the vast majority of the 2023 campaign after suffering a tibia fracture in the team’s Week 5 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. His prolonged absence has perhaps prompted some national pundits to forget how impactful of a player the former fifth-round pick is when available, but few linebackers are more consistently dynamic than a healthy Milano; he’s tallied 488 tackles, 39 pass deflections, and 10 interceptions as a professional, this stat line a testament to his seemingly innate nose for the football.

Buffalo’s defense has played well enough in Milano’s absence, helping the team construct an 8-2 record. Sophomore linebacker Dorian Williams has looked generally stout playing in place of the veteran, tallying a team-high 93 tackles through 10 games; regardless, having a player as demonstrably impactful as Milano back in the lineup before long will certainly bode well for the Bills.

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