Sources tell ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the Buffalo Bills’ Matt Milano has suffered a torn bicep, and the starting linebacker will be out indefinitely. A typical timeline for bicep tears means that Milano will be back by December at the earliest (if at all this season).
Bills’ coach Sean McDermott confirmed Thursday that the Pro Bowler tore his bicep during Tuesday’s practice during a bag tackling drill, and will undergo surgery that will keep him out indefinitely. McDermott said it’s too soon to know whether Milano would be able to return this season, describing the injury as an “unfortunate situation” and noting: “Matt’s a strong, young man. I know he’s gonna handle this. It’s certainly tough, especially coming off the year he came off of already. The good thing is he’s got a good family behind him that’s gonna support him, teammates that are gonna support him, as well as the coaching staff and our entire football organization. He’s resilient, and we’ve got to be resilient. We’ve got to move forward and be focused on solutions.”
McDermott added: “When you know the person, you know that this is not going to beat or keep Matt Milano down. 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.”
Since becoming a full-time starter in his second season (2018), Milano, 30, has not played a full slate of regular season games. The latest injury for Milano marks the second straight season the linebacker will be out of play — he fractured his leg in Week 5 last season, missing the rest of that campaign. Milano signed a two-year contract extension in 2023, linking him with the team through the 2026 season.
Taking Milano’s place in the Bills’ lineup will be Dorian Williams, the team’s 2023 third-round pick, who is set to start as outside linebacker alongside starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard, a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL draft. McDermott said of Milano’s replacement: “It’s not just one person’s job to fill the void or try and fill the void left by Matt. You’re never going to replace a player like Matt or Matt’s influence, but now it’s time for our team to move forward in a resilient manner and pick each other up, and guys like Dorian have to step up.”
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