NFL analyst expects major rebound from Bills DE Von Miller: He'll 'make a difference'

NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger recently broke down Von Miller's 2023 postseason performance, feeling as though he set the stage for a major rebound in 2024.

Kyle Silagyi | Jul 2, 2024

Sep 19, 2022; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills linebacker Von Miller (40) and Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano (58) react to making a play during the first half against the Tennessee Titans at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports / Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

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Buffalo Bills defensive end Von Miller is heavily acquainted with being the topic of conversation.

As a former top-two draft pick and the NFL’s active-all-time sack leader, he’s long been a player oft-discussed in national discourse, and for good reason—he’s been one of the league’s most vaunted pass rushers since entering the NFL in 2011. And Miller-centric discussions have continued into the 2024 offseason, but they’ve taken on a different tone; instead of discussing the veteran’s talent and gaudy potential production, fans are questioning whether there’s still tread on the tire.

The questions are fair. He’s coming off an injury-impacted 2023 campaign in which he totaled just three tackles and zero sacks, his 17 total quarterback pressures, per PFF, being the lowest of his professional career by a considerable margin. He was largely a nonfactor for the Bills throughout his 12 regular season appearances, not being noticed for his patented ghost move, but instead for looking like a ghost of his former self.

The underwhelming season was perhaps a result of his condensed rehabilitation timeline; he returned in Buffalo’s Week 5 contest with the Jacksonville Jaguars last season, less than 11 months after tearing his ACL in November of 2022. Though Miller was the one who was primarily pushing the narrative of an early return, he’s recently realized that he perhaps should’ve given himself more time to properly heal, telling Sports Illustrated that he “shouldn’t have been out there” last season.

Miller did, however, start to look more like the player of old as the season progressed and the time removed from the initial injury grew. New Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said as much while speaking to reporters last month, stating that “there were flashes of some Von Miller” at the end of the 2023 campaign. Former NFL offensive lineman and current NFL Network personality Brian Baldinger seemingly agrees with this sentiment, recently posting a video breaking down the defender’s performance in Buffalo’s 2023 Divisional Round matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs.

“When you watch Von Miller in this playoff game against the Chiefs, it looked like Von Miller,” Baldinger says in the clip.

.@BuffaloBills @VonMiller to everyone who has torn an ACL; you know that it can take 2 years before it feels good. In this playoff game @chiefs Von looked like himself. Big expectations in 2024 for #40. #BillsMafia #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/yVRBygbnnY
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) July 2, 2024

Baldinger breaks down Miller’s burst and play recognition in the clip, stating that the 35-year-old was finally starting to look like himself as he continued to recover from his ACL tear.

“It takes a while to come back from that ACL,” he said. “This is when he started feeling really good at the very end [of the season].

“You Buffalo Bills fans are going to get a healthy Von Miller this year, for the first time in almost two years. It’s going to make a difference, especially up front and especially against the great quarterbacks in the AFC.”

Miller showing even a flash of his former self would be monumental for Buffalo in the 2024 season, especially after a season in which he was arguably a bigger detriment than he was contributor. He perhaps doesn’t project as a starter in the upcoming campaign (with Gregory Rousseau and A.J. Epenesa expected to man the starting defensive end spots), but if Miller can recapture some of his former glory, he’d bring some much-needed juice off the bench. The idea of him working himself back into the starting lineup also isn’t egregious.

Any production from Miller would be welcomed, and the team’s coaching staff is seemingly expecting a rebound. Bills head coach Sean McDermott recently praised the pass rusher’s mindset during an appearance on the Centered on Buffalo podcast, stating “You never count a player or person like Von Miller out.”

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