Bills' Von Miller Out for Season After Knee Injury Diagnosed as Torn ACL

After being placed on injured reserve last week with a knee injury, Buffalo Bills superstar pass-rusher Von Miller on Wednesday was ruled out for the remainder of the 2022 season.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said Miller underwent exploratory surgery Tuesday that resulted in the repairing of his ACL.

Miller had said he didn't tear his ACL but suffered a lateral meniscus injury, and he was hopeful he would return.

Per Rapoport, imaging tests "did not adequately show" that Miller had torn his ACL. The plan was to reposition Miller's lateral meniscus surgically and clean up cartilage damage, but it was discovered during the procedure that Miller had torn his ACL.

Miller suffered the injury during the Bills' Thanksgiving Day win over the Detroit Lions, and he was placed on IR, which ensured he would miss the next four games.

While he would have been eligible to return for Buffalo's Week 17 game against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Bills will now be without arguably their top defensive player for the remainder of the campaign.

After lacking an elite pass-rusher in recent years, the Bills signed Miller to a six-year, $120 million contract during the offseason in hopes that he was the missing piece to their Super Bowl puzzle.

The 33-year-old veteran is a surefire future Hall of Famer with 123.5 career sacks as well as eight Pro Bowl nods, three first-team All-Pro selections, two Super Bowl championships and the Super Bowl 50 MVP award.

Last season, the Los Angeles Rams acquired Miller in a trade with the Denver Broncos, and he recorded five sacks in eight regular-season games as well as four sacks in four playoff games during their run to the Super Bowl LVI title.

Miller was great in his first season with the Bills, registering a team-high eight sacks in 11 games. He had two sacks in a Week 6 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.

In his absence, the Bills will have to lean on their less-accomplished pass-rushers, including defensive ends Greg Rousseau, A.J. Epenesa, Boogie Basham and Shaq Lawson plus defensive tackles Ed Oliver, Jordan Phillips and DaQuan Jones.

Buffalo still boasts a talented defense anchored by cornerback Tre'Davious White, safety Jordan Poyer and linebackers Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds as well as one of the top offenses in the league, led by quarterback Josh Allen.

The Bills are the top seed in the AFC at 9-3, but the road to the Super Bowl will be more difficult without Miller.