'I could have easily sat out all of last season, but I couldn't do my teammates like that'
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Bills pass rusher Von Miller played in 12 games last season after returning from a torn ACL, but failed to record a sack for the first time in his professional or collegiate career.
The dip in performance was uncharacteristic for the NFL's active leader in sacks, and the lack of threat off the edge hampered the Bills defense as the team crashed out of the playoffs before reaching the Super Bowl once again.
While Miller was clearly not at full strength last season -- even after claiming in June that he was "ready to go" following his ACL tear the previous November -- he recently offered a new revelation about his injury recovery: "I shouldn't have been out there."
Miller offered a lengthy answer about his recovery at the end of a promotional interview with Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation about his line of eyeglasses, going as far as saying he's "angry" about the way fans are judging him based on last season's performance.
"My biggest individual goal is just getting back to playing my style of football. It's crazy how you get injured, and you come back, and you really shouldn't have even been playing, and people judge you by a product on the field," Miller reportedly told the outlet.
"I could have easily sat out all of last season, but I couldn't do my teammates like that. I felt like being later in my career, I didn't want to sacrifice any of my years. But at the same time, I shouldn't have been out there."
For what it's worth, Bills GM Brandon Beane said after the season that he felt Miller's play was trending up as the season progressed.
"You saw that explosiveness coming back and that should only improve, according to our medical team," Beane said in January.
Miller agreed to a pay cut this offseason, which helped the Bills through a difficult salary cap situation. But when the team lost Leonard Floyd and his team-leading 10.5 sacks to San Francisco in free agency, it increased the urgency for Miller to return to form entering his age-35 season.
"I feel like people are judging me on that, so it's making me a little bit angry, to be honest," Miller said. "It's making me tap into a Von that I haven't been in a while. I just want to get back to playing my style of football. Get back to talking s***, f****** making sacks, dancing, and making plays for my teammates. That's been my whole mindset this offseason."
The Bills can only hope Miller uses whatever motivation is necessary to tap back into the old Von and help the team reach the promised land.
"The biggest team goal is bringing the first Super Bowl to Buffalo," Miller said. "Everyone feels like they deserve it, and they work hard, but Buffalo Bills fans and Western New York, they deserve it, man. They do so much for our community and our football team. Josh Allen is an amazing player and person -- he is one of the most amazing people that I have ever been around in my life. These guys deserve it, and I'm going to do everything in my power to give it to them."
